Manila House private club to consider expansion

PRIVATE CLUB Manila House is open to expanding to other cities outside the capital once the current site completes its renovations.

“Maybe. People always say maybe in Cebu, or some other place. We’re so lucky because we found this lovely spot,” Manila House Chair Doris Magsaysay Ho said on the sidelines of an event in Taguig City last week in response to a query about possible expansion.

Last week, Manila House signed a 10-year lease renewal with the NEO Group for the private club’s space at the NEO building in Bonifacio Global City. The club is currently undergoing renovation.

“We just want to make this work very well now that we are doing renovations. We’ll make that work and we’ll think later (about expanding),” Ms. Ho said.

She said that possible expansion areas for Manila House should have “a unique selling proposition.”

“It’s got to have a unique selling proposition. We don’t have enough heritage sites. Wouldn’t it be nice if we had a club in a beautiful heritage site?” Ms. Ho said.

Some of the renovations in Manila House include the closing of Avenue Bar to be transformed into an area where members can listen to music, a new deck, and a garden extension.

“We hope to have a jazz bar where we can listen to music. There will be a lot of transformation, a lot of exciting things coming,” Ms. Ho said.

NEO Chief Executive Officer Raymond D. Rufino said the new 10-year lease with Manila House, founded in 2017, is a win-win arrangement for both parties.

“It’s to the benefit of Manila House and its members because this is to ensure the viability and sustainability of the club. In addition, Manila House adds benefit to our tenants in the buildings because it’s where they meet. Manila House is a community space,” Mr. Rufino said.

Meanwhile, Ms. Ho said that more memberships will be available in Manila House as the renovation proceeds.

“More memberships are available, but slowly selected so that we will not be overwhelmed,” she said. —