Soho House, the global icon private members’ club, has been sold for $2.7bn (£2bn) in a transaction that brings Hollywood actor Ashton Kutcher onto its board of directors.
The buyout, headed by MCR Hotels and private equity group Apollo, takes the company back into private hands after a tumultuous couple of years listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
The chain, launched in 1995 by restaurateur Nick Jones, now operates as a global hospitality giant with 46 clubs in Europe, North America and Asia, plus Soho Works office facilities and Scorpios Beach Clubs in Mykonos and Bodrum. Its venues are now identified with celebrity culture, with members rumoured to include Kate Moss, Kendall Jenner, Ellie Goulding, and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
Even with its A-list membership, Soho House has been under increasing pressure since listing in 2021. Shares at first hit a high of $14.21 but have otherwise fallen sharply, the agreed £9-per-share takeover remaining far short of that peak. Soho House has been unable to sustain profitability, under criticism that aggressive expansion diluted the sense of privilege that originally characterized its brand.
Tyler Morse, MCR Hotels’ chief executive – owner of marquee properties such as the TWA Hotel at JFK and London’s BT Tower – indicated the company was “thrilled to be part of the Soho House story.” He highlighted future expansion, mentioning that four new club openings were already planned.
Kutcher, who has also established himself as a successful venture capitalist, will sit on the new board under the terms of the deal. His appointment has already received widespread publicity, although analysts warn that there must be more than “celebrity stardust” to revive Soho House fortunes.
Susannah Streeter, Hargreaves Lansdown’s head of money and markets, pointed out that though Ashton Kutcher’s presence is glamorous, “MCR Hotels, Ashton Kutcher and the rest of the investors will have their work cut out to return Soho House to a firmer financial base amid doubts over the sustainability of its business model.”
Jones, still a shareholder, referred to the return to private ownership as an expression of confidence. “I’m incredibly proud of what our teams have achieved and am looking forward to our future, as we remain driven by our members and rooted in the ethos that makes Soho House so unique,” CEO Andrew Carnie said.
With celebrity backers and large hotel chains behind them, Soho House’s new chapter will push the company to see if it can sustain global expansion with the exclusivity that made it a cultural phenomenon.
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