Dreams do come true. This is what the unbelievable story of Simon Sio's success proves.
Sio recently bought the grandest accomodation in Macao from old times, Hotel Central, where he was not allowed to enter as a child, CNN reported.
The businessman who grew up in an old building in the heart of the Macao city of Portugal, right across from the Hotel Central, which was inaugurated in 1928 and quickly became a gathering place for politicians, diplomats, and celebrities.
Young Sio, in the 1960s, playfully sneaked into the hotel as it was among very few places in the colony that had air conditioning and luxurious spaces, but one day he was thrown out of the hotel.
Like every other kid, he pointed at the hotel and vowed, “I'll buy it someday,” without knowing that one day he would actually do that.
Moreover, after growing up, in 1991 he founded his own real estate development company, Lek Hang Group, and in 2024 he reopened the 96-year-old Hotel Central as its new owner.
The 65-year-old businessman said that he did not buy the hotel because he promised to do so but to restore the disappearing historic building of his city that is close to his heart.
Sio said, “If we talk about Macao’s history, we cannot neglect San Ma Lo. If we talk about San Ma Lo, we cannot neglect Hotel Central.”
He further added, “The giant watched me grow up like an elder. So I had a deep emotional attachment to it. At its peak, it was my idol. As I became older, its decay made my heart uncomfortable
Sio revealed that till date, a mint-colored seven-story hotel is the tallest, largest building on San Ma Lo. So, he kept his eye on opportunities to restore it.
