Phuket resort sacks 400 staff ahead of sale
Mystery surrounds the future of the Evason Phuket resort after almost 400 of its workers were sacked this week.
The Phuket Insider’s Bill Barnett, of C9 Hotelworks, said the closure of the 260-room hotel has triggered concern in the island’s hospitality sector.
He said expectations are that this is a lead-up for a transaction of the property, which is being offered for sale by Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels.
While the property has been in the market for over a year, Barnett said the triggering point of the sale was the takeover of the Bangkok-based Six Senses Group by Pegasus Capital earlier this year.
Under the terms of the deal, Pegasus acquired all of the Six Senses and Evason branded resort and spa management contracts.
The Soneva brand and resorts, as well as the company’s real estate assets and holdings, were not included in the transaction.
At the time of the transaction, Craig Cogut, founder, Pegasus Capital Advisors, said, "The brand has a great heritage, and we believe it is strongly positioned to grow.
"Going forward, the new Six Senses will be a debt-free company with committed capital for expansion into new and within existing international markets."
The Evason name was created by Sonu Shivdasani, chairman and CEO of the Soneva Group, who named both Evason and Soneva after his wife Eva and himself.
Ian Jarrett
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Global tourism exceeds 1.5 billion travelers announces UN-Tourism
Qatar Airways offers reduced timetable to over 60 destinations
WTTC global tourism reached record economic impact of 11 trillion in 2025
Marginal increase for New York City tourism in 2025
Hands In, UATP join forces for airline multi-card payments