Found at: http://www.anguillaguide.com/article/articleprint/5854/-1/135/
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CAP JULUCA'S FORMER OWNER FULLFILS MILLION DOLLAR PROMISE TO EMPLOYEES
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On the heels of the announcement that Cap Juluca had been purchased by an investor syndicate led by noted travel industry executive, Adam Aron, former owner of the world famous resort, Dion Friedland, has distributed his gift of one million US dollars to the 400 employees. The gift, on the sale of the property, was a promise that Mr. Friedland made to the Honourable Chief Minister, Osbourne Fleming, on behalf of the Cap Juluca employees last year.
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Members of Cap Juluca’s Staff Council and Mr. Friedland
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Mr. Fleming told reporters on Wednesday that he was pleased that the money was given to the resort’s workers. He confirmed that Mr. Aron was now the owner of all of Mr. Friedland’s shares. He said the Memorandum of Agreement between the Government and Mr. Aron and his partners was yet to be fully completed. Other matters still to be addressed include the Government’s ownership and participation in the property, the terms and phases of development and job security for the employees.
Mr. Friedland, a private investor and entrepreneur, who has owned the resort since 1997, delivered personalised cheques to each of the employees. He thanked them for their “contributions to making Cap Juluca one of the world’s best resorts and an unforgettable experience for guests.”
In a farewell letter to the employees, Mr. Friedland told them that “Cap Juluca is now about to enter the long-awaited exciting growth phase under Mr. Adam Aron…Mr. Aron and his partners will soon begin a major renovation of the property and thereafter a new and exciting building phase. The rejuvenated and expanded Cap Juluca will offer fantastic growth opportunities for those of you who are ambitious and prepared to give the Cap Juluca team your full support.
“It is my sincerest wish that you will not be tempted away by offers from other hotels that will be opening in Anguilla. None of them will have the ingredients that make Cap Juluca so special – the beach, the people, the camaraderie and ultimately the highest-ranking with guests, which results in high occupancies and high service charges.”
The former owner further wrote: “I truly expect Cap Juluca to go from strength to strength and to achieve the highest rankings in the luxury end of the hotel industry, world-wide. Hopefully, you will make your future with Cap Juluca for the long-term, and participate in and enjoy the fruits of its future success.”
Mr. Freidland told The Anguillian that at the outset of his ownership of the property in 1997, his objective was “to turn Cap Juluca into the number one hotel in the Caribbean. This we have accomplished so I feel, although I am going out of ownership, very satisfied that the objective was reached because many of the rating services have rated Cap Juluca number one in the Caribbean several times. In fact, Harper’s Hideaway Report readers have voted Cap Juluca number one in the Caribbean for six years in a row and this past year, they had the resort number four in the world. I think Mr. Aron’s objective should now be to turn Cap Juluca into the number one hotel resort in the world.
Asked what he will do now that he has sold all of his shares in Cap Juluca, Mr. Freidland replied: “I have many other things that keep me busy, but I intend coming back to Cap Juluca just as often as I used to, but on vacation now.”