Track Record
Track record & projects:
A selection of some of our clients higher profile endeavours with which we have been able to help.
Universal Studios Developments by Morris Sellers Inc
Involved since the opening of the studios tour in 1990, the firm has embraced the concept of ‘packaging’ sports and amusement parks with housing and hotels so that each element adds value to the others. Since 2003 we have helped structure the financing of the hundreds of millions of dollars of tourist facilities and housing that has flourished with the Studio Tour remaining the centrepiece.
Televising the four major Tennis Grand Slam Tennis Tournaments
The all powerful IMG sports management company transformed revenue streams for tennis and golf in the 90s representing as they did nearly all the top athletes involved and the major tournaments. However Mark McCormack’s death left IMG without strong direction. As the tv contracts negotiated by IMG reached the end of their terms in the mid 2000s, we were asked to represent the renegotiation of those TV rights and we continue to do so.
The London Eye
Built in 1999, at the time as the largest ferris wheel in the world for the millennium celebrations, by 2005 the Eye had run into severe financial trouble.
We were instrumental in restructuring its debt, exiting British Airways from ownership and retooling management so as to make it now one of the most successful tourist operations in Europe attracting more visitors to pay more monies than any other attraction in the UK.
Dubai Media City
Originally called Dubai Film City this project became the blueprint for the middle east’s media hub in Dubai with over 150 companies and 80 hotels located there. The firm was pivotal in the creation of that blueprint. As a spin off, the firm assisted Dubai Land in its successful 6 year plan to increase the average tourist stay from 1.5 days to over a week.
The MIOT Hospital Chennai India Visa changes
Having worked as part of the team that facilitated the building of the state of art MIOT hospital facility in India, the economic health care model required sourcing affluent international patients (in part to subsidise the provision of medical care to the less affluent local market). The medical know how and machinery were available but India’s visa requirements were an impediment. The firm successfully negotiated and then helped the authorities draft a new category of visa for patients and their immediate family / staff that was introduced by the Indian Government in 2005 and remains operated today.
Morocco Film City
This US $1.2 billion mini city blueprint over 200 hectares for a co-operation between government and private industry was developed for 5 years and received planning consent but then was shelved as the world economic crisis sank tourist numbers in 2008/9.
The Shanghai Government's World Expo 2010 site
The firm was engaged from 2008 by the Chinese authorities to advise on what to do with the 6 square kilometre site after Expo concluded. The result has been much applauded as a ‘green’ urban planning success.
The Oasis at Tala Bay Aqaba
The firm led the same team as worked on Morocco Film City to develop a similar size site in Jordan with the Aqaba Development Authority.
Characterised by Express magazine as one of the top ten finest mega -projects to never get made, the Arab spring tensions and neighbouring instability in Syria have placed the project on hold.
The UK 'clean- up' of football
Not all has been a success story for us this decade. Clients purchased a football club in financial trouble and pumped £50 million into saving it. Unbeknown to the firm they also paid themselves undisclosed commissions and as part of the UK Governments clean up campaign were caught with their hands in the cookie jar!
We were initially implicated in the criminal case against our clients and found guilty until being exonerated on appeal.
Ferrari World / Yas Island Abu Dhabi / Valencia
Opened in 2010 in Abu Dhabi, Ferrari World is the largest indoor amusement park in the world. It has a staggering 20 different rides including the fastest longest roller coaster on the planet !
The development of a marina, hotels, restaurants and housing around the theme park covering the whole of Yas island is a perfect example of the value added principle.
With Abu Dhabi a success the firm has been involved as lead negotiator in the protracted negotiations to build Ferrari world outside of Valencia Spain with other Ferrari spin off facilities in Alicante the package requiring over a billion euro of investment excluding land costs.
Bluewater Park London Phase II
Served by high speed train that makes it a 20 minute ride from central London the Bluewater shopping centre is the largest in Europe and has the biggest visitor footfall in the UK. We have been engaged for Phase II which will enlarge the site x 10 making it effectively a new satellite leisure city to feed into and off London.
The Pal Arinsal ski resort development in Andorra
The Andorran Government wishes to develop the existing 11 square kilometres of ski resort but has no resources so to do. The development is intended to include the country’s first and only private airport as well as new luxury housing, upmarket retail development and a six star palace hotel.
We have been asked to participate by providing legal advice, feasibility studies and management recommendations, working towards a package that we can help finance from the private sector.
Formula One Consultancy
With a TV audience fortnightly of 400 to 600 million nothing has the potential to promote a location like F1. However it is a costly and complicated undertaking. The firm has advised Shanghai, Malta and Valencia in respect of the costs verses tourism benefits for each particular case and is in talks with two other nation’s agencies as to potential feasibility.