Sonu and Eva Shivdasani, who are known for establishing ultra-luxury sustainable hospitality brands Soneva and Six Senses, are launching a new luxury hotel brand called Sosei, which means “rebirth” in Japanese.

Earlier this year KSL Capital Partners increased its stake in Soneva to become the majority owner of the brand, following an initial investment in the brand in 2019 that amounted to a stake that was reportedly worth 35-40 per cent.

The Shivdasanis remain minority shareholders but have stepped away from Soneva’s day-to-day business.

The new Sosei brand will offer comfort and luxury at intimate properties in remote locations, as well as major cities.

Prospective destinations for the new brand are reported to include the Arctic Circle, the mountains of Europe, South Africa, Japan and other locations in Asia.

The couple opened the Soneva Fushi spa resort in 1995 in the Maldives, pioneering a sustainable barefoot luxury concept with its ‘no news, no shoes’ policy.

Soneva has long championed greater environmental accountability in the hospitality sector and beyond. Its resorts are all carbon neutral with a two per cent environmental levy added to every stay.

In 2023, Sonu Shivdasani was honoured as an officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to tourism, sustainability and charity by the King of England.

Today, Soneva's portfolio includes Soneva Fushi, Soneva Kiri in Koh Kood, Thailand, Soneva in Aqua (the company’s chartered yacht based in the Maldives) and Soneva Jani in the Maldives – the first site for the brand's Soneva Soul concept, which launched in 2022.

Read a recent interview with Sonu Shivdasani in Spa Business about Soneva Soul.

The company’s Soneva Secret hospitality concept launched in January 2024 at a 14-key private island resort in the Maldives’ Haa Dhaalu atoll. The Soneva Soul concept guides this property’s wellness offering.

The couple previously developed the Six Senses Resorts & Spas brand, which they sold to private equity group Pegasus in 2012. Six Senses was subsequently sold to IHG in 2019 for US$300m (€251.8m, £216m), while under the leadership of former CEO, Neil Jacobs.