The Westbury London is to auction off furniture and fittings from its guest rooms and public areas next month, ahead of a “major refurbishment” of the property.
Over 8,000 items are to be sold off including sofas, lamps, chandeliers and drapery (including silk-lined Jim Thompson curtains), writing desks, headboards and canopies from rooms, and furniture and fittings in the public areas, bars and restaurants and commercial kitchens.
The auction will also see the hotel – which is currently marketed under Marriott’s Luxury Collection – put its wine cellar stock under the hammer, along with signed prints by “leading contemporary artists”.
The sale is being organised by specialist hospitality auctioneers Pro Auction, and takes place at the hotel between June 7 and 10, with online bidding also available. More details on items for sale can be seen here.
Located off Bond Street in London’s Mayfair, The Westbury opened in 1955 as the first five-star American hotel in the capital, and is “poised to undergo a major refurbishment as part of the hotel’s commitment to providing guests with unrivalled facilities and services”.
New designs by an un-named “world-renowned interior designer” will cover all guest rooms and public areas.
Last year owner Cola Holdings was reported to be seeking offers for the freehold of the hotel, along with two adjacent buildings. Savills reported at the time that the Cola Family had recently received planning permission to “extensively redevelop the existing hotel building, which will include an extension to the rear, the re-build of the sixth and seventh floors and a new eighth floor”.
Commenting on the auction Simon Rose of Pro Auction said:
“This unprecedented renovation project for the hotel brings with it the opportunity to purchase a piece of the hotel’s history at auction as the owners pave the way for a new chapter for The Westbury.”
To read Business Traveller’s review of the hotel, published in October 2017, see:
