Clarence Tan appointed group chief executive for Millennium & Copthorne Hotels

IHG veteran Clarence Tan has been appointed group chief executive for Millennium & Copthorne Hotels (M&C) and is set to join the company on Thursday 2 April.

His appointment follows the privatisation of the company last year and he is the first appointment to the role since Jennifer Fox stood down in 2018 after just three months.

Tan has been tasked with spearheading a turnaround in the performance of M&C’s global hotel portfolio which encompasses 150 hotels, including the Biltmore in London’s Mayfair, which relaunched last year following a £60m refurbishment, and Hard Day's Night hotel in Liverpool.

Tan joins the group having most recently served as the managing director for South East Asia and Korea with InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) and had been with the company for 16 years. During his 16-year career with IHG, he held various leadership roles in finance, business development and hotel operations, including chief financial officer of Asia Pacific.

He was also financial controller of Raffles International for two years and was the Raffles Grand Hotel d’Angkor hotel manager prior to joining IHG.

Tan said: “The evolving Covid-19 outbreak continues to greatly impact the hospitality industry globally. Amidst the operating challenges and uncertainty, I see a significant opportunity to reshape M&C’s strategies and reposition the business. M&C has a distinctive asset portfolio with latent value to be unlocked. I look forward to working with chairman Kwek and the board, together with my M&C colleagues around the world. With teamwork and the right strategies, I believe that we will be able to overcome this difficult period and set a firm foundation to further grow our hospitality business.”

Kwek Leng Beng, executive chairman of M&C and its parent company City Developments (CDL), said, “On behalf of the board, I am delighted to welcome Clarence to the CDL Group. As a veteran hotelier with a wealth of international experience in hotel operations, management and finance, his leadership will be critical in navigating M&C through near-term global and macroeconomic challenges, as well as driving portfolio performance enhancements through significant cost-efficiency initiatives and building brand equity.

“With his extensive and distinguished career in the hospitality industry, and strong business, financial management and business recovery capabilities, I am confident that Clarence will play a key role in this integration and transformational process, elevating M&C into a formidable global hospitality group.”

Jennifer Fox stands down as CEO of Millennium & Copthorne Hotels >>

The Biltmore to open 19 September with Jason Atherton’s Betterment restaurant >>