Room2 has agreed a 30-year lease to be the headline tenant at Fulham Town Hall, a West London community landmark that is being restored by Ziser London.
Fulham Town Hall by room2 will be room2’s first premium hometel product, with 90 rooms at the centre of the luxury leisure and co-working destination that will bring together a range of operators.
The restored former civic centre will include a mix of event and co-working space, as well as food and beverage offerings, to create a community destination. The project, which will reclaim and enhance some of the building’s oldest artwork and features including the council chamber, is due to be finished by Q4 2021.
Construction of the 90-room Fulham Town Hall by room2 will, subject to planning permission, commence in May, with the first guests welcomed in early 2022.
Fulham Town Hall by room2, will be heavily influenced by the latest in sustainable building design and fit out with the majority of rooms featuring kitchenettes, whilst guests will also have the ability to select their own type of mattress and check in via their mobile. room2’s highly flexible offer also includes 24-hour stays as standard with residences available from one night to one year and beyond.
The brainchild of brothers Robert and Stuart Godwin, former members of the British Olympic Development Sailing team, hometels combine the best elements from Airbnb, serviced apartments and boutique hotels in an offering designed to appeal equally to corporate and leisure guests and those seeking alternative forms of residential accommodation.
Fulham Town Hall by room2 will be the fifth operating hometel when it opens. room2 currently has two operational locations, the Southampton hometel and Hammersmith Townhouse, both of which have performed strongly since opening. An 89-room hometel in Chiswick is scheduled to welcome guests in Q2 2021, followed by a 59-key Manchester offering.
Godwin said, “Ziser London’s vision for transforming Fulham Town Hall, one of West London’s most iconic and unique buildings, excited us from the outset. The location is in a neighbourhood that our family business has been active in for nearly half a century and we are proud to have the opportunity to be a part of this landmark project.
'As a dynamic and family run business, Ziser’s approach and ethos perfectly complements our own, which gives us huge encouragement that this partnership can be a success.
“Our creative outreach was key to being chosen as the centrepiece offering of this landmark redevelopment and we see Ziser’s decision as a strong endorsement of our pioneering hometel concept.'
Godwin continued, 'As our first premium hometel, Fulham Town Hall by room2 is a natural evolution of our business model and demonstrates our ability to curate the product to fulfil a range of guest needs.
'We are incredibly excited by the potential complementary mix of operators being lined up to join us, bringing together like-minded experts focused on delivering discerning customers a world class experience.”
Guy Ziser, CEO of Ziser London, added, “We are excited to have room2 on board for its first high end location in London; we believe hometels to be a forward thinking product which will complement the other proposed uses within Fulham Town Hall.
'This is a refurbishment that will breathe much deserved and long awaited new life into what is a truly special building for the community and which will further position Fulham as a destination of a choice.”