Kempinski pulls out of London hotel project
German luxury hotel group Kempinski has finally abandoned its plan to open the London hotel it had earmarked as its first in Britain.
Kempinski's admission that it will not be opening in Harrington Gardens, South Kensington, comes after months of delays to a hotel that was supposed to be open by last Christmas.
The delays were previously described by Kempinski as a "building and development issue", although this week it was refusing to elaborate in detail on the decision to pull out completely. A spokeswoman said the group could not say more for legal reasons.
But although Kempinski has abandoned its plans for the Harrington Gardens site, it still wants a London hotel.
Reto Wittwer, Kempinski president and chief executive officer, said: "Naturally the group is disappointed that our arrival in London has had to be postponed. However, as the project evolved we came to the conclusion that it no longer suited the Kempinski brand development strategy."
He added: "We remain determined to have a presence in London and we have renewed our efforts to find the right property in this important market."
Kempinski has 30 hotels worldwide including the Adlon in Berlin, the Grand Hotel Europe in St Petersburg and the Ciragan Palace in Istanbul.
by David Harris