Bole property to be repurposed into hospital, commercial space
Seid Mohammed, proprietor of several businesses under the brand name ‘Ambassador’, has shuttered the doors of Ambassador Hotel to repurpose the property as the hospitality industry struggles to recover from the holdover effects of the pandemic.
The three-star Hotel located adjacent to the Millennium Hall in the Bole area had been operating for 15 years before it closed its doors on January 10, 2024.
A slowdown in business forced the Hotel’s management to close the door with a plan to repurpose the property, according to Seid.
“Business isn’t the same after the COVID-19 pandemic,” he told The Reporter.
Seid disclosed the Hotel was running at a hefty loss.
He also disclosed plans to repurpose one of the four buildings on the property into a hospital. Seid says there are discussions underway with representatives of a well-known hospital, but he refrained from specifying which one.
The remainder of the property will be used for commercial and residential purposes, according to him.
“Ambassador Hotel played a big role in the hospitality industry, serving the guests coming to Ethiopia,” Seid told The Reporter. “But we have to repurpose the buildings for other services.”
Senior management and boards of the Ambassador businesses approved the decision to pivot the Hotel venture following long discussions and a conviction the change needed to happen.
Ambassador Hotel first opened in time for the Ethiopian Millennium with 48 rooms housed in one building. In the years following, the Hotel expanded to four buildings with a room capacity of 197.
Close to 100 staff employed in the Hotel’s security, custodial, finance, and other departments, will remain with Ambassador as it repurposes the buildings.
A portion of the staff will, however, be let go in accordance with labor laws and with severance compensation, according to Seid.
The Hotel employs 134 individuals, while the Ambassador conglomerate, including the core garment business and the Ambassador Mall property in Arat Kilo, employs 500 staff.
Seid founded his business in 1982 with a sewing machine, growing to the forefront of the domestic textile market over the last four decades.
