Jagdesh Patel is a Kenyan billionaire investor associated with the Sentrim Hotel portfolio. The Sentrim Group has about five hotels under its wing, located in different counties across the country.
Sentrim Kenya was incorporated in Kenya on 27th March, 1969. The company operates Hotels and Lodges business. It was registered under the Registration of Business act on 29th June 1971.
Currently the business is operating and managing five units under the name of Sentrim Hotels and Lodges.
These properties include the following
- Sentrim Elementaita, Lake Elementaita
- Sentrim Amboseli, Amboseli
- Sentrim Mara, Ngama Hills (Maasai Mara)
- Sentrim Tsavo, Tsavo East
- Sentrim Castle Royal Hotel, Mombasa
- The recently sold 680 Hotel in Nairobi
Mr. Patel recently made headlines after the conclusion of the sale of one of his hotels, the 680 Hotel located in Nairobi’s City Centre. The three star-facility was sold to Chris Musau, owner of Machakos-based Maanzoni lodges for an estimated Ksh. 1.2 billion.
In 2018, Patel contracted property firm Knight Frank to sell his eight hotels at a guiding price. The firm recently signaled that the sale of the other seven hotels is in the last stages of conclusion.
The 680 will now join the Maanzoni franchises, including the three-star lodge with 326 ensuite rooms located on a 28-acre plot in Lukenya, Machakos.
Mr. Patel, Rajnikant M. Shah and Harji V. Hirani each own a share in local companies that own hotels in the Sentrim Group. The Nairobi-registered firms, Mayhouse Ltd (680), Chezer Investments (Boulevard), Newgate Management Ltd (Castle Royal) and Operation Castle (Sentrim Elementaita), own the buildings and land on which they sit.
The 680 derived its name from the number of beds it had when it launched. Up to the time of its sale, it was the biggest moneymaker for the Sentrim group, raking in Ksh. 213 million in 2018. Knight Frank holds that profit from 680 can either be maximized either by renovating the building into an office block or letting the three-star hotel continue its good run.
The hotel is said to have attracted interest from both local and foreign investors. Documents sent to potential buyers only reveal three individuals as minority shareholders, with companies as majority shareholders.
