Pulse Investments Limited, headed by Kingsley Cooper is all set to unveil a development project which will transform the nine acre estate that is Villa Ronai, located on Old Stony Hill, St Andrew into one of the country's leading entertainment/hospitality complexes. Pulse has gained a reputation as the Caribbean's leading model agency producing world renown models such as Lisa Hanna, Nadine Willis, Kimberly Mais and Jaunel McKenzie. It owns and operates the franchise Caribbean Fashion Week (CFW) and its spin-off television shows which are broadcasted across the region and the Diaspora. Over the last few years the company has been re-organised, has relisted on the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) and continues to register steady growth.
Although known for its entertainment expertise, very little is known of its real estate holdings. It holds prime real estate on Kingston's Trafalgar road which houses its headquarters, retail outlets, the bar and nightclub Studio 38 and a storage facility. It also has the Versailles-like property, Villa Ronai, a prized piece of real estate which Cooper has planned to develop for a many years as a multi-purpose complex that would attract the more discerning patron. He is getting closer to realising his dream.
Villa Ronai with its lush botanical gardens, outdoor gallery of original sculptures and mosaics as well as waterfalls and ponds the description is apt. It was first developed by the Ronai family who came to Jamaica from Hungary in the late 1940s. Arpad Ronai was the Belgian Consul General to Jamaica, but it was his wife Anna, her mother and her daughter who created the art and aesthetics found at the property. In the fifties and sixties the property would attract as many as 1,000 visitors a day, mainly from the cruiseships.
In the nineties Cooper purchased the nine-arce property by now dilapidated, run down and covered by thickets. He was entranced by its beauty and aesthetics and harboured ambitions to transform it into a venue for entertainment related shows. He set about making it so but it would take some time and putting Pulse on a sound financial footing would occupy his energies.
We have planned an official opening for sometime over the next six months. We will now look to add a world class destination spa which hopefully will attract people from around the world. Villa Ronai will also contain 50 suites where people can come and stay on the property."
Taka, who is responsible for the Japanese restaurant, East in Marketplace will operate and run Majestic Sushi & Grill.
"For the few past years, I have been visiting Tokyo, New York and Miami to study both authentic and modern Japanese cuisine. Majestic Sushi & Grill is a very stylish and modern Japanese restaurant which offers high grade Japanese food located in the most prestigious and exclusive setting of Villa Ronai," said Taka.
Majestic Sushi & Grill and Ashanti Oasis Vegetarian Restaurant are expected to open their doors to the public by Easter of this year. A third restaurant is also on the drawing board and so to is a fitness centre.