It’s been more than 20 years since Carrie Bradshaw and her “Sex and the City” compadres were tossed from Soho House New York, but the episode helped launch the private members’ club into the zeitgeist. Since then, scores of gliterrati and those wanting to join the ranks have petitioned for membership—a card-cum-badge-of-honor that showed one had juice, and also access to a rooftop pool.
Soho House, which was launched in 1995 by Nick Jones and has now swelled to more than 45 houses globally and some 200,000 members, went public in 2021, trading under the name Membership Collective Group, after a majority of the company had been acquired by U.S. billionaire Ron Burkle in 2012 in a £250-million deal. Since then, it had trouble turning a profit, roiling investors and guests, alike, some complaining that Soho House had lost some of its exclusivity, while at the same time dealing with a more crowded and competitive private-club landscape. Since its beginning, it’s expanded to cities including São Paulo, Mexico City, Nashville and Paris. (Here’s a timeline of openings.)
Now, the company is going back private once again. As vaious news outlets have reported, a consortium of investors led by New York-based hotel owner and operator MCR Hotels will take the company private in a $2.7-billion deal that will see MCR get Soho’s publicly traded shares while founder Jones and Burkle and his investment firm Yucaipa will retain majority control of the business, as Reuters reported. Concurrently, actor Ashton Kutcher has been appointed to Soho’s board while, effective immediately, Neil Thomson takes over as CFO replacing Thomas Allen. He will report to Soho House CEO Andrew Carnie, who in a statement said of the deal: “This transaction reflects the strong confidence our existing and incoming shareholders have in the future of Soho House and the transformation we’ve led since becoming a public company. Since our IPO in 2021, we’ve focused on building a stronger, more resilient business against a backdrop of challenging economic conditions and global uncertainty. We’ve expanded our global footprint while continuing to build strong connections with members and invest in houses that we’ve called home for many years. Returning to private ownership enables us to build on this momentum, with the support of world class hospitality and investment partners.”
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Under the deal, shareholders will receive $9 a share for the company’s outstanding public stock, a 17.8% premium to the closing price on Friday. Funds managed by affiliates of Apollo are providing additional capital in the form of debt and common equity.
Daniel Loeb, whose hedge fund Third Point owns a nearly 10% stake in Soho, had previously urged the company to consider other suitors and reportedly called a $9-a-share deal a “sweetheart” deal.
MCR Hotels is led by its maverick Chairman and CEO Tyler Morse, one of the more outspoken leaders in the hospitlaity industry, who typically uses his soap box to fulminate against everything from online travel agencies to what he perceives as an oligopoly among franchise lodging companies. He’s grown MCR into a powerhouse that owns and operatoes more than 150 hotels—branded and independents, alike. Hightlights include the TWA Hotel at JFK Airport, The High Line Hotel and Gramercy Park Hotel, both in New York. It also recently purchsed the BT Tower in London with the express intent to convert it into a hotel.
In the Soho House deal, Morse is going outside traditional lodging into an adjacent segment that has a clear focus on experience. “Soho House is a place of creative connection, where freedom of expression and character thrive,” he said. “All of us at MCR are excited to be part of the Soho House journey, helping to create more experiences, interactions and memories alongside friends and members. MCR’s investment in Soho House represents a strategic opportunity to combine our operational expertise with one of the most distinctive brands in hospitality. Our shared goal is to safeguard the member experience, drive sustainable international growth for members, and protect and expand the cultural and creative foundation that has made Soho House a global industry leader.”
