Langham Hospitality Group is setting its sights firmly on Australia as a key market for future growth, with a multi-pronged approach that includes renovation of its flagship Melbourne property, continued focus on its Gold Coast address and actively scouting for new developments in Sydney and beyond.

Despite the challenges of the post-pandemic environment and Australia’s high construction costs, Langham remains bullish about expanding its presence. “We’re working on potential development in Sydney,” Jeffrey van Vorsselen, Managing Director of The Langham Melbourne and Regional Vice President Operations – Pacific, told LATTE at International Luxury Travel Market (ILTM) Asia Pacific in Singapore earlier this week.

While no concrete timeline was shared, van Vorsselen noted that high construction costs mean the company is exploring adaptive reuse projects, with opportunities being explored not only in Sydney but in other key cities.

He highlighted Perth, Adelaide and Queenstown as on the radar as well as the brand’s potential reintroduction in Auckland, where the former Langham was rebadged under the company’s Cordis brand in 2017. “We’re actively looking in that market again,” he said

The desire to expand comes on the back of the successful launch of Langham Gold Coast in 2022, with the hotel located in the Jewel development, exceeding expectations, according to van Vorsselen. “Now there’s actually some luxury product in place, and now it’s attracting people at that end of the market and it’s helping to change that perception,” he said.

Meanwhile, in Melbourne, a major renovation is in the pipeline for the Langham’s flagship property. “We want to start the renovation this year,” he shared. The plans include room refurbishments, changes to event spaces and other enhancements to bring in more natural light: “The idea of having natural light is beautiful because it overlooks the river.”

The renovation is expected to be completed by the end of Q3 next year, without requiring the hotel to close. “We can just take two floors at the top, two at the bottom, and work our way through,” he explained.

Both the refurbishment plans and the Gold Coast property reflect the brand’s desire to modernise while staying true to its historic roots, with the brand celebrating its 160th birthday this year. To this end, the company is rolling out a campaign featuring its “Langham Luminaries” designed to appeal to a younger demographic. A Sydney version of the campaign will be rolled out later this year.

With an ambitious global goal of reaching 100 hotels by 2040, Langham sees Australia as a vital part of that vision. “A lot of our growth is definitely going to be in Asia-Pacific — and Australia is very much part of that story,” van Vorsselen said.