Dorchester Collection is a luxury

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a ref ...

operator owned by the Brunei Investment Agency (BIA), an arm of the Ministry of Finance of

Brunei Brunei ( , ), formally Brunei Darussalam ( ms, Negara Brunei Darussalam, Jawi alphabet, Jawi: , ), is a country located on the north coast of the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. Apart from its South China Sea coast, it is completely sur ...

. Dorchester Collection owns and manages nine luxury five star hotels:

The Dorchester The Dorchester is a five-star luxury hotel on Park Lane and Deanery Street in London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under ...

(London), The Beverly Hills Hotel (Beverly Hills), Plaza Athénée (Paris), Hotel Meurice (Paris), Principe di Savoia (Milan), Hotel Bel-Air (Los Angeles), Coworth Park (southwest of London), 45 Park Lane (London) and Hotel Eden (Rome).

History

In 1987, the

Sultan of Brunei The sultan of Brunei is the monarchical head of state of Brunei and head of government in his capacity as prime minister of Brunei. Since independence from the British in 1984, only one sultan has reigned, though the royal institution dates ba ...

Hassanal Bolkiah Hassanal Bolkiah ibni Omar Ali Saifuddien III ( Jawi: ; born 15 July 1946) is the 29th and current Sultan and Yang di-Pertuan of Brunei since 1967 and the Prime Minister of Brunei since independence from the United Kingdom in 1984. He is on ...

, bought the

Dorchester Hotel The Dorchester is a five-star luxury hotel on Park Lane and Deanery Street in London, to the east of Hyde Park. It is one of the world's most prestigious and expensive hotels. The Dorchester opened on 18 April 1931, and it still retains its ...

and the

Beverly Hills Hotel The Beverly Hills Hotel, also called the Beverly Hills Hotel and Bungalows, is located on Sunset Boulevard in Beverly Hills, California. One of the world's best-known hotels, it is closely associated with Hollywood film stars, rock stars, and cel ...

and then transferred the ownership to the Brunei Investment Agency in 1991. The Audley Group, owned by the BIA, was established in 1996 to manage the hotels under one company. Later, the Audley Group became the Dorchester Group Limited. The Dorchester Group Ltd. owns the Dorchester Collection which was established in 2006 to manage several luxury hotels in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located enti ...

and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

. The Dorchester Collection manages 9 luxury hotels. The hotels are a mix of wholly owned and part-owned hotels as the Dorchester Collection acquires them and manages them on behalf of third party owners.

Restaurants

Alain Ducasse Alain Ducasse (; born 13 September 1956) is a French-born Monégasque chef. He operates a number of restaurants including Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester which holds three stars (the top rating) in the Michelin Guide. Early life and career ...

and China Tang at The Dorchester *

au Plaza Athénée *Restaurant le Meurice Alain Ducasse *La Terrazza at Hotel Eden *

Wolfgang Puck Wolfgang Johannes Puck (born July 8, 1949) is an Austrian-American chef and restaurateur. Early life and career Puck was born in Sankt Veit an der Glan, Austria. He learned cooking from his mother, who was a pastry chef. He took the surname of ...

at Hotel Bel-Air * Polo Lounge at the Beverly Hills Hotel *Woven by Adam Smith at Coworth Park *CUT at 45 Park Lane *Acanto at Hotel Principe di Savoia

Controversy

Sultan

, via his Brunei Investment Agency (BIA) owning the Dorchester Collection hotels, raised concern abroad in April 2014 by implementing the

Sharia law Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam and is based on the sacred scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran and the ...

penal code that includes death by stoning, the severing of limbs, and flogging for crimes in

such as abortions, adultery, and homosexual acts. None are exempted from the Sharia Law regardless of the classes they are in and the laws only apply in Brunei's border.

has a complex legal system that consists of two parts which involve separate courts and legislation for Islamic and non-Islamic citizens. In protest, a United States national LGBT advocacy organization, the

Gill Action Fund The Gill Action Fund is an American 501(c)(4) issue advocacy organization founded in 2005 by philanthropist and entrepreneur Tim Gill to provide resources to individuals and organizations on both sides of the aisle working to advance equality for L ...

, canceled its reservation to hold a conference of major donors at the Beverly Hills Hotel and demanded a refund of its deposit. The hotel management responded by issuing a statement asserting that it does not discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation. Fashion designers

Brian Atwood Brian Atwood (born August 4, 1967) is an American shoe designer of Mexican descent. He studied at the Fashion Institute of Technology before becoming a model. Women's shoe designer In 1996, after modeling for seven years he was the first Am ...

and Peter Som subsequently called for wider protests, urging the fashion industry to boycott all of the hotels owned by the Dorchester Collection. The Beverly Hills Hotel, long a popular spot for celebrity functions, has been rejected by much of Hollywood over the controversy.Brunei Ownership Casts a Shadow on a Beverly Hills Hotel
''The New York Times'', May 10, 2014. HR Magazine said that the protests are "misguided" and will not affect the government policy of Brunei when the Dorchester Collection's annual revenue is $300 million while the BIA has over $30 billion in assets from oil and gas.

Chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especial ...

Christopher Cowdray Christopher Cowdray (born 1955) is a Zimbabwean-born British hotel manager. He is the chief executive officer of the Dorchester Collection, a hotel operator in Europe and the US. Early life Christopher Cowdray was born in 1955 in Zimbabwe.

asked the public to consider the issue at hand in a broader perspective, citing the fact that many brands are backed by foreign investors. The U.S. national advertising-industry newspaper

Adweek ''Adweek'' is a weekly American advertising trade publication that was first published in 1979. ''Adweek'' covers creativity, client–agency relationships, global advertising, accounts in review, and new campaigns. During this time, it has cove ...

declared that "the bad press and protests have tarnished the glamorous image of the Beverly Hills Hotel, one of the most famous hotels in the world" and added that "such extreme brand damage will be difficult to repair." As of May 2014, "more than $2 million worth of events have been canceled at the Beverly Hills Hotel by dozens of groups." There have also been people speaking out in opposition of the protests and boycott of the hotel.

Russell Crowe Russell Ira Crowe (born 7 April 1964) is an actor. He was born in New Zealand, spent ten years of his childhood in Australia, and moved there permanently at age twenty one. He came to international attention for his role as Roman General Max ...

and

Kim Kardashian Kimberly Noel Kardashian (formerly West; born October 21, 1980) is an American socialite, media personality, and businesswoman. She first gained media attention as a friend and stylist of Paris Hilton, but received wider notice after the s ...

have spoken out against the boycott, despite disapproval of the new laws in Brunei, citing how it is unfair to punish the hardworking employees and workers at the hotel. In March 2019 when the Sultan announced the coming into force of the sharia law in question on 3 April 2019

George Clooney George Timothy Clooney (born May 6, 1961) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by George Clooney, numerous accolades, including a British Academy Film Awards, British Academy Film A ...

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...

and

Ellen DeGeneres Ellen Lee DeGeneres ( ; born January 26, 1958) is an American comedian, television host, actress, writer, and producer. She starred in the sitcom '' Ellen'' from 1994 to 1998, which earned her a Primetime Emmy Award for " The Puppy Episode". S ...

called again for a boycott of all hotels associated with him. It resulted in the Sultan backtracking on enforcing the laws that would have made sex between men and adultery punishable by stoning to death in May 2019.

References

{{Government of Brunei Hotel and leisure companies based in London Hotel and leisure companies of the United Kingdom Hotel chains Hotel chains in the United Kingdom