Portfolio expansion gathers momentum with more than 5,000 units added within first quarter of 2018, over 300% increase year-on-year.

The Ascott Limited (Ascott), is accelerating its expansion in Asia by forging strategic partnerships with leading developers in China, Japan and Thailand to manage apartments currently under development as well as future projects by these companies.

In China, Ascott has partnered specialty township developer, Riverside Group, to launch serviced residences in Zhejiang, Chongqing and future riverside themed towns in other key cities. This strategic partnership will start with two serviced residences with a total of 350 units in Zhejiang and Chongqing. It follows Ascott’s contract with Riverside Group to manage the 190-unit Ascott Riverside Garden Beijing which opened in November last year.

In Japan, Ascott has entered a business cooperation with the listed Japanese real estate company, NTT Urban Development Corporation – a subsidiary of Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation to jointly explore serviced residence opportunities in Japan and are currently working on two projects in Fukuoka and Yokohama.

In Thailand, one of the country’s top listed developers, Ananda Development, has expanded into the serviced residence business through its strategic alliance with Ascott. The first four properties under the collaboration – Somerset Rama 9 Bangkok (below), Ascott Embassy Sathorn Bangkok, Ascott Thonglor Bangkok and one more property in Sukhumvit 8 – will offer close to 1,500 apartment units in Bangkok when they open between 2020 and 2021.

In addition to the 1,607 units that expanded its portfolio in January and February, Ascott is adding management and lease agreements for another 14 properties with about 3,400 apartment units across 10 cities in China, Japan, Thailand and Indonesia this quarter. This includes a lease agreement with department store chain, Takashimaya Company, Limited, to operate the first Citadines Apart’hotel in Osaka.

Slated to progressively open from this year to 2021, these newly signed properties will mark Ascott’s maiden entry into Dongguan (below) and Huizhou in China’s fast-developing Greater Bay Area, as well as deepen Ascott’s presence in the Chinese cities of Dalian, Haikou, Hong Kong, Nantong and Shanghai, Osaka in Japan, Bangkok in Thailand, and Bandung in Indonesia.