Morgans Hotel Group to Operate and Manage Lifestyle Hotel as Part of Baha Mar Resort

NASSAU, Bahamas, Oct. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Baha Mar Ltd. announced today that they have signed a Letter of Intent with Morgans Hotel Group (Nasdaq: MHGC) to operate and manage the planned 300-room lifestyle hotel to be included as part of the destination resort metropolis, Baha Mar Resort.

The partnership with Morgans Hotel Group comes following a decision previously announced by Baha Mar to shift its strategy away from aligning with a single family of hotels, towards one that allows it to work with multiple, best-in-class brands giving Baha Mar an opportunity to feature the very best brands for each of the different high-end hotel segments planned for the property.  The strategy also affords Baha Mar the ability to reach a broader set of customers based on the sales and marketing and loyalty programs of each brand.  

Morgans Hotel Group, which has a long history of revolutionizing the hospitality industry with innovative lodging concepts characterized by personalized service, design-centric ambiance and timeless elegance, is known for its well-received properties in major international destinations including the Delano and Shore Club resorts on Miami Beach; the Mondrian in Los Angeles and South Beach, Miami; St. Martins Lane and the Sanderson in London; Morgans, Hudson and the Royalton in New York City; and Clift in San Francisco.  Morgans Hotel Group added Ames in Boston to its portfolio in November of 2009 and will open Mondrian in SoHo in early 2011.  Together with an equity partner, Morgans Hotel Group also owns the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.  

"We are truly excited to have Morgans Hotel Group manage and operate Baha Mar's lifestyle hotel. The Morgans Hotel executive team immediately saw the vision of our project and the opportunity of raising its flag in The Bahamas," said Don Robinson, President, Baha Mar. "Morgans Hotel Group has been a great partner with us throughout this process and we welcome them to be part of this one-in-the-world destination resort."    

Baha Mar recently announced that it will be partnering with Rosewood Hotels & Resorts to manage and operate the property's 200-room luxury hotel.  Baha Mar expects to announce the brand selected for its convention hotel in the coming week. It is anticipated that Baha Mar will make The Bahamas one of the premier tourist locations in the world, drawing millions of vacationers and business travelers each year to the resort's six hotels. With almost 3,500 rooms and condos, the largest casino in the Caribbean, the largest convention center in The Bahamas, a world-class golf course, retail village and much more, Baha Mar Resort represents the Caribbean's largest single-phase destination resort. Baha Mar will employ approximately 4,000 Bahamians over the life of the construction period, which is expected to last nearly four years.  Once the resort is complete, approximately 98 percent of the staff will be Bahamian nationals, representing some 7,000 jobs for Bahamians.

For additional information please visit www.BahaMar.com or www.morganshotelgroup.com.

SOURCE Baha Mar Ltd.