The Upper House

What The Upper House does

The Upper House is a privately held, single-property modern business hotel operated by Upper House Hotels Sdn Bhd in Batu Kawan, Penang, Malaysia, founded in 2020. The hotel offers accommodation across four room categories (Premier King, Upper King, Upper Twin, and Family Suite with Executive Level options) at nightly rates starting at RM198 and reaching RM322 for the Premier King, complemented by two on-site food and beverage outlets (Dolcé Pâtisserie & Cuisine on the ground floor and Bambū Small Plates rooftop tapas bar), a meeting room with audio-visual equipment, a rooftop swimming pool, and an executive lounge. The property is anchored within Vervea, described as the largest gated and guarded commercial precinct in Northern Malaysia, neighboring IKEA and adjacent to Batu Kawan Industrial Park.

The underlying technology stack is standard for the boutique-hotel segment: a third-party online booking engine (The Booking Button) integrated into the official website for self-serve reservations, third-party restaurant reservation software (myfunnow) for the Bambū F&B outlet, LG smart TVs in rooms, complimentary Wi-Fi throughout, and a property management system. The hotel is PDPA-compliant under Malaysian Personal Data Protection Act 2010.

Revenue is generated primarily through nightly room bookings distributed via direct website, OTAs (global scope), and phone reservations, supplemented by food and beverage sales from the in-house outlets. The go-to-market is direct-to-consumer with multi-channel acquisition through social media (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn), Tripadvisor listings, and email marketing. The business targets two primary segments in roughly equal measure: business travelers seeking proximity to the Vervea commercial district and Batu Kawan Industrial Park, and leisure travelers visiting IKEA, Design Village Outlet Mall, and other local attractions.

Name

The Upper House

Legal name

Upper House Hotels Sdn Bhd

Website

https://upper-house.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Upper House is a privately held, single-property modern business hotel in Batu Kawan, Penang (Malaysia), operating four room categories alongside two F&B outlets, meeting facilities, and a rooftop pool, serving business travelers visiting the Vervea commercial precinct and Batu Kawan Industrial Park as well as leisure travelers to nearby retail attractions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Business Hotel Accommodation

NAICS

Hotels (except Casino Hotels) and Motels (72111)

SIC

Hotels, Rooming Houses, Camps & Other Lodging Places (7000)

akta.pro primary industry

Resort-Area Full-Service Hotels (Non–All-Inclusive) (THAGAAAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Executive Apartments (Corporate Housing) (THAGAEAD)

Keywords

• Business hotel accommodation
• Hotel dining services
• Meeting and event facilities
• Guest room rentals
• Rooftop bar restaurant

Headquarters

HQ city

Penang

HQ country

Malaysia

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Hotel Room Bookings: Primary revenue from nightly hotel room rentals across multiple room categories (Premier King, Upper King, Upper Twin, Family Suite). Revenue is generated through direct bookings and OTA commissions.
2. Food & Beverage Services: Revenue from on-site dining at Dolcé Pâtisserie & Cuisine (breakfast service) and Bambū Small Plates rooftop tapas bar (high tea and dinner sessions). F&B promotions are also offered.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Upper House operates a single-property modern business hotel in Batu Kawan, Penang, offering guest accommodation across four room categories (Premier King, Upper King, Upper Twin, Family Suite), two on-site dining outlets (Dolcé Pâtisserie & Cuisine and Bambū Small Plates rooftop tapas bar), and supporting facilities including a meeting room, rooftop swimming pool, executive lounge, and on-site business center. The property is marketed to both business and leisure travelers with complimentary Wi-Fi and amenities such as Serta mattresses and organic toiletries.

Product overview

The Upper House is a single-property modern business hotel operating as a unified offering rather than a modular platform. The hotel provides accommodation across four room categories (Premier King, Upper King, Upper Twin, and Family Suite with Executive Level rooms) complemented by food and beverage outlets including Dolcé Pâtisserie & Cuisine (ground floor restaurant) and Bambū Small Plates rooftop tapas bar. Additional services include meeting rooms with audio-visual equipment, rooftop swimming pool, executive lounge, and on-site business center. All facilities are offered under one brand as integrated hotel services rather than separate product lines.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Premier King Room

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature3 records

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Hotel Jen Penang: International-affiliated (Shangri-La group) full-service hotel in downtown George Town. Comparable in business-traveler amenities and F&B scale, with broader brand-distribution reach and a more established Penang footprint.
• Cititel Penang: Established mid-scale business and leisure hotel in George Town, Penang. Comparable in mid-tier positioning and dual-segment targeting, with a stronger George Town tourist-district location and longer operating history.

Direct peers

• M Social Penang: Millennium Hotels' boutique business hotel brand in Penang targeting modern business and leisure travelers. Comparable in contemporary design, smart-room technology, and dual-segment demand profile aimed at younger corporate and leisure guests.
• AC Hotel by Marriott Penang: International-chain business hotel in Penang with modern design and dual business/leisure appeal. Comparable in product positioning (smart rooms, business amenities, F&B) and customer segments, with the added dimension of Marriott loyalty distribution.
• G Hotel Penang: Independent Malaysian business hotel group operating full-service properties in Penang targeting both corporate and leisure segments. Directly comparable in positioning as a modern, mid-to-upper-tier business hotel serving similar dual-segment demand in the same Malaysian state.
• Raia Hotel Penang: Malaysian mid-scale business hotel in Penang with full-service amenities and meeting facilities. Directly comparable in room-category structure, F&B offerings, and targeting of price-sensitive business and leisure travelers in Penang.
• Ixora Hotel Penang: Mid-scale Penang business hotel with full-service amenities including F&B and meeting facilities. Comparable in pricing tier (mid-range), customer mix, and product offering as a regional full-service competitor.
• Olive Tree Hotel Penang: Mid-scale full-service business hotel in Bayan Lepas/Penang serving corporate travelers near industrial zones. Comparable in offering business amenities (meeting rooms, executive lounge, on-site dining) and targeting a similar business + leisure mix.

Others

• IKEA Batu Kawan (co-tenancy, not a hotel peer): Anchor retailer adjacent to The Upper House in Aspen Vision City. Included as an OTHERS ecosystem peer because IKEA's foot traffic directly drives leisure demand for the hotel, making it a co-tenancy driver rather than a competitor.

Regional players

• Travelodge Bukit Bintang (Malaysia benchmark): Malaysian mid-scale business hotel operator in Kuala Lumpur with comparable room-and-F&B revenue model. Comparable as a benchmark for Malaysian mid-tier business hotel unit economics, though operating in a different metropolitan market.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/The-Upper-House-100364854737805
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-upper-house-hotel
• Instagraminstagram.com/theupperhouse_penang

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Upper House