The Prime Minister of Australia, Honourable Anthony Albanese, has officially opened the five-star Branksome Hotel and Residences, near Sydney Airport, on Friday December 16, fulfilling a longstanding promise to Branksome Hotel Owner and Rex Airlines Executive Chairman, Lim Kim Hai.
Former Australian politician and now Deputy Chairman and Independent Director of Rex Airlines, John Sharp AM, led the opening ceremony which was attended by other notable dignitaries including Member for Kingsford Smith, Matt Thistlethwaite, and Bayside Council Mayor Dr Christina Curry, as well as emergency services personnel including the New South Wales Fire Brigade and members of the South Sydney police force.
The Prime Minister congratulated Lim Kim Hai for his “extraordinary vision” and his strong investments in transport and accommodation in Australia.
“I am so pleased to be fulfilling a promise that I gave to Kim Hai and John, that if I was the Prime Minister, I would come back here and make sure that I opened the refurbished facilities,” Prime Minister Albanese said.
“Can I congratulate Kim Hai for his extraordinary vision and for being prepared as an entrepreneur to invest here in Australia, whether it’s airlines or the hotel here and other investments that have taken place.
“We welcome investment that creates jobs and economic activity here … and I know that many of the staff here would come from the local community.”
Albanese also spoke about his time as shadow minister covering the areas of transport and tourism and praised the resilience of both industries during the challenges of recent years.
“One of the things about transport and tourism … is that it is sustainable. It is how we connect with each other and how we connect with the world,” he said.
“I congratulate Rex as an airline but also this hotel for the way in which the tourism industry and the transport industry adapted to the challenge of COVID.
“It is quite remarkable, frankly, that at a time where our economy was shut down, we didn’t see airlines fold up completely and go out of business, and that the hospitality sector continued to evolve and indeed use the opportunity, as this facility did as well, to refurbish.
“The tourism sector saw a challenge as an opportunity and that’s one of the themes that my government hopes to have as part of our narrative.”
Industry outsider brings fresh approach
The Branksome Hotel, which first opened in October 2017, is located next to Rex Airlines head office (on Baxter Road) in Mascot.
When Rex bought the land from New South Wales Racing, it was a vacant block, and despite having no prior experience in the hotel industry, Kim Hai decided to build a hotel on it, as John Sharp explained.
“Kim Hai, in typical fashion, did not hire any consultants or advisors,” he said.
“He designed the hotel himself based solely on his common sense and personal experience staying in hotels.”
Sustainability was a key focus in the build of the hotel with significant efforts made to reduce its environment footprint.
“Way before sustainability was fashionable Kim, nine years ago, decided that he would invest heavily to reduce the carbon footprint of this hotel,” Sharp said.
“Rainwater is captured in very large systems underneath the carpark here the hotel; lighting throughout the building is controlled by a smart system that automatically adjusts the levels. It has the maximum number of solar panels installed on the roof to reduce energy consumption, and the ground is lush with trees and plants to further capture carbon dioxide.”
Despite approaches from several hotel chains to run the hotel under their franchise, Kim remained adamant that he would run the hotel independently.
“As an independent boutique hotel, the Branksome soon gained a very solid reputation,” Sharp said.
When the industry was hit by the COVID pandemic, the hotel continued to trade.
“It refused to go down the path of a quarantine hotel and kept operations going as normal, albeit with reduced services,” Sharp said.
“The Branksome is proud to say that it didn’t retrench any staff during the COVID period.”
After the borders fully reopened in February 2022, the Branksome became one of the strongest performers in the airport precinct with occupancy rates consistently above 85%, Sharp revealed.
The 152-room hotel includes 10 meeting rooms making it popular with the corporate market. Its accommodation offering includes one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartment-style rooms that feature full kitchen and laundry facilities making it suitable for long-term stays.