"I feel that compared with Shenzhen, I prefer the scenery of Shanghai. The combination of classic and modern is very impressive."
"Of course, Yulia, if we talk about heritage, the Magic City is naturally more profound. Thirty years ago, Shenzhen was just a small fishing village. It took thirty years to develop into the prosperity it is today. It can be said to be a miracle. In China, there is a term called 'Shenzhen Speed'."
At this time in Shanghai at the end of April, the temperature is already very warm at noon.
Barron and his group walked on the Bund. He introduced to Yulia beside him:
"As early as the beginning of the last century, the Magic City was already known as the Paris of the East. Look at the buildings on that street over there. They were all built by many foreign-funded institutions during the Republic of China period in China. They have a strong European style."
"The scenery of this street is indeed very suitable for the luxurious positioning of our Devonshire Hotel. Are you planning to open our first hotel in China here?"
Hearing Yulia's words, Barron smiled and said,
"This is a great choice, isn't it? I don't know where else it could be better than here."
He pointed to the center of the classical buildings adjacent to the Bund and said,
"I have taken a fancy to that place. I hope that the future Devonshire Bund Hotel can join the extraordinary streetscape of the Bund."
Barron and his group, in addition to Wang Wanting, included many blond-haired and blue-eyed "foreigners", especially behind Barron, the young and handsome Duke, and Julia Moore, the graceful beauty, there were seven or eight people surrounding them.
The four bodyguards in black suits and sunglasses led by Danny Burton are even more eye-catching.
Therefore, it attracted the attention of other tourists on the Bund, and many people stopped from afar to look at them.
"I have to say, there are really a lot of people in China..."
In response, Yulia couldn't help but say this.
"Haha, Yulia, the current scene is nothing compared to the last time we went to West Lake. Well, China's May Day Golden Week is coming soon. I'm afraid you will be able to enjoy the scene full of people then."
The last time Barron came to China, it was during China's National Day holiday. It can be said that many of the scenic spots he visited were crowded with tourists.
Now it is the end of April and the May Day holiday is coming soon. I am afraid that the Bund in Shanghai will be crowded with people again.
"Mr. Cavendish, our leader has arranged a luncheon. It's almost time now. Can we go over?"
At this time, a young man in a suit and tie walked up to Barron and spoke to him politely.
This person was the representative sent by the local government of HP District of Magic City to accompany them on the tour. After hearing the other party speak these words to him in fluent English, Barron nodded and said to Yulia:
"The Chinese have a tradition of discussing things over the wine table. Next, let's talk to their officials about the hotel investment."
Yes, the main reason why Barron came to Shanghai this time was to prepare to establish the Devonshire luxury hotel of Cavendish Hotel Group in Shanghai, China.
It can be said that in mainland China, Shanghai is probably the most suitable city to be the first luxury hotel. After all, in terms of politics, Yanjing is the center of China, but in terms of economy, Shanghai is the best choice. It is also their window area for opening up to the outside world and has the largest number of foreign-funded enterprise headquarters in the country. For foreign capital such as Cavendish Hotel Group, it is naturally the best investment location.
It can be said that this investment in Shanghai will be Barron's largest investment in China so far.
The Magic City also attaches great importance to this investment by the hotel group owned by Barron Cavendish, the Duke of England. After all, this investment will not only attract huge amounts of foreign exchange, but the completion of such a luxury hotel will also be of great significance to the image of the entire Magic City and the improvement of local hardware facilities.
During this banquet, the mayor of HP District personally received Barron and his team, and the two sides discussed the location of Devonshire Magic Hotel.
The building that Barron had his eyes on was the Bund No. 2 building, which was once the site of the ShangHai Club and is currently a cultural relic protection building in Shanghai.
The Shanghai Club was a club for British expatriates in Shanghai and was an important social venue at the time. It was founded in 1867.
The current building was rebuilt in the early 20th century after the original building was demolished. The new building was completed in early 1910, covering an area of 1,811 square meters and a construction area of 9,280 square meters. The building facade is arranged in three sections, with six Ionic stone columns in the middle of the 2nd and 3rd floors, and Baroque wind pavilions on the top. The detailed carvings are delicate and beautiful.
It can be said that this building has witnessed a lot of history of Shanghai, and the choice of Devonshire Hotel here does have a certain special significance.
For the Devonshire Bund Hotel, Cavendish Hotel Group will invest 100 million pounds and invite the world's top designers to design it.
It is worth mentioning that in the original time and space, this building later became part of the Hilton Hotel Group's first Waldorf Astoria Hotel in China, but this hotel did not open until 2011.
Therefore, eight years in advance, the Cavendish Hotel Group had the opportunity to intercept and open its own Devonshire Hotel here.
In this era, an investment of up to 100 million pounds cannot help but be taken seriously by the Magic City.
After reporting the Devonshire Bund Hotel project to the higher authorities, it quickly received the local government's approval in principle. The next step was to carry out detailed planning.
Barron also plans to build a new building of the same style next to the old building of The Bund No. 2, just like the Karldorf Hotel in the original time and space, and then connect the two buildings to become the theme of Devonshire Bund Hotel.
After completion, the hotel will have more than 20 luxury suites and a total of more than 300 rooms of various types, and will also include a luxury club in the old building - a top club that provides a full range of services such as catering, fitness, and SPA.
The Magic City also attaches great importance to this project. Although the Cavendish Hotel Group is not very well-known internationally, it currently owns the largest number of luxury castle hotels in England. The "Devonhill" brand has become a representative of grace, nobility and the most top-notch British aristocracy.
Therefore, in addition to the 100 million pounds investment from the Cavendish Hotel Group, their local bank will also provide them with a loan of 500 million Chinese yuan to build the Devonshire Bund Hotel into a top luxury hotel.
After all, it was Barron's bold investment of 100 million pounds that impressed the local government of Shanghai. After learning the detailed information of Barron Cavendish, the young Duke of England, they were indeed reassured by his strength.
The Cavendish Hotel Group is only a small part of his industry. Other media groups, communications companies, investment companies, etc. are all very well-known in the UK.
In addition, the young duke also has many investments in China, mainly concentrated in the Internet industry. He holds shares in Penguin, NetEase, Alibaba and Baidu, which are companies with a certain influence in the emerging Internet industry.
It can be said that they are still very much looking forward to the subsequent investment of this British aristocrat.