Lang Walker made his estimated $2.3 billion fortune by developing some of Sydney’s most iconic sites, Finger Wharf and King Street Wharf. But one of the only things those projects share with his latest endeavor, a private island resort in Fiji, is a nine-figure price tag.
“This is the only project I’ve ever really fallen in love with,” said Walker, 72. It’s also the first one he hasn’t seen as a business decision or moneymaker. Instead, Kokomo Private Island Fiji is a passion project, pure and simple. With just 21 villas on the site of an abandoned, half-built Aman resort, all with access to the world’s fourth-largest coral reef, Kokomo is meant as an oasis for Walker’s family that he can also share with the world. It was so personal, in fact, that he eventually multiplied his original $10 million budget by at least 10—a spend that’s rare for a resort so small.
Even before the hotel soft-opened last year, it was “beyond a ‘project for profit,’” Walker told Bloomberg in an interview. “I’m told I can’t go over there too much because every time I have a new idea, that costs money,” he added.
But Walker is developing the resort with the same eye toward sustainability and innovation he’s used on his company’s latest initiative, Melbourne’s $2.5 billion Collins Square. With new food and beverage offerings, a hilltop gym, a spa expansion, and a hydroponic nursery coming to Kokomo this year, he’s evolving the property in hopes that it will join a shortlist of the world’s best resorts.
The Dream, Developed
“I’ve done many wild and different things, but never an island, so there was a cheeky I-wonder-what-it’s-like feeling,” said Walker.
The relatively remote island of Yaukuve Levu, in Fiji’s rural southern Kadavu island group, was ideal: It has four pristine beaches, there are virtually no other hospitality venues nearby, and guests have easy access to one of the world’s most epic dive sites, the Great Astrolabe Reef. “In 10 minutes you’re diving in a massive drop-off among fan corals,” he said.
Besides the 21 sprawling, thatched-roof villas, Walker envisaged butler service, a child-care center, and a massive organic garden. His goal: to create an intergenerational getaway with a minimal carbon footprint.
“I thought, This’ll be pretty easy—maybe 18 months I can have it up and running. Maybe a budget of $10 million,” Walker said, laughing. But creating a luxury resort on a far-flung island had some serious initial impact: it called for a seaplane, a helicopter, two barges, and a fleet of recreational boats to cater to his $7,500-a-night guests. He also added five residences to the original plan, each with three to six bedrooms; spent lavishly on local materials like cinnamon wood; and splurged on unseen details that streamline back-of-house operations. By the time Kokomo welcomed its first guests six years later, Walker had invested at least $100 million.
Keeping Paradise Green
Kokomo’s design amalgamates the best parts of Walker’s favorite resorts around the world. Lush landscaping and privacy walls were taken from nearby Laucala Island, the restaurants’ casual vibe from Nikki Beach St. Barth. The villas have outdoor showers, private infinity pools, massive decks, and Veuve Clicquot-stocked minibars.
But the goal is to make this luxury you can feel good about. The list of sustainability features spans an on-island water filtration system, greywater system, and sewage treatment plant. There’s also a four-hectare tiered organic garden, free-range chicken coop, beehives, and soon a flock of ducks—for farm-to-table Peking duck at the Asian restaurant, Walker d’Plank. This strategy serves multiple ends, said Walker: “It’s far more economical than importing frozen things.”