Akash Boutique Hotel
Sugar / Founder
I build places
PRAVEEN ARIYARATNE · FOUNDER & HOSPITALITY OPERATOR
I build places
that make people
feel alive.
For me, hospitality is the joy of making something unique—then watching people feel happy, comfortable and connected inside it.
BUILDER+OPERATOR+PROBLEM SOLVER
Since childhood, I have loved making new things. I think that instinct came from my father—an inventor who was always creating practical ideas to make people’s lives easier.
01DISCIPLINE AT SEA
FROM COLLEGE TO THE MERCHANT NAVY
My first working world was the ocean.
After graduating from college, I joined the Merchant Navy as an officer and served aboard ships. Life at sea taught me discipline, responsibility and how different systems and people must work together when there is no room for confusion.
While I was ashore preparing for further examinations, an unexpected opportunity changed the direction of my life.
NSEA
→
STAYTHE TURNING POINT
→
STAYTHE TURNING POINT
02 / THE FIRST HOTELA beautiful property.
A beautiful property.
Almost no business.
Ekala, Ja-Ela
Overlooking paddy fields
Limited hotel knowledge
My uncle, Mr. Sanatha Saparamadu, owned a peaceful boutique hotel overlooking the paddy fields in Ekala. My brother gave me the opportunity to run it while I studied. It became the turning point of my life.
The property was beautiful, but the business was not working. I began with almost no hotel knowledge and one clear target: make this hotel profitable.
“I did not begin with the perfect plan. I began with a real problem that had to be solved.”
2019 / A MARKET IN CRISIS0
International demand disappeared.
During the Easter attack period, Sri Lankan tourism was deeply affected. Waiting for foreign visitors was not a strategy. I had to understand what local guests needed most and build an offer around that pain point.
THE BREAKTHROUGH1
A local solution found its audience.
Facebook advertising became the engine. At a time when few small hotels were using it strategically, my friend Pasan Punchihewa helped me recognise the opportunity. We matched a clear local need with focused digital promotion—and the hotel became profitable.
03LEARNING BY BUILDING
ONE SUCCESS OPENED THE NEXT DOOR
Every property became a new education.
After the first turnaround, we expanded. A Merchant Navy college friend owned an old guesthouse called Moi in Galle Fort. It became the first hotel I had the opportunity to redesign and build into a boutique experience.
There was no generative AI to guide the work. Pinterest brought global inspiration, hands-on experimentation built my confidence, and my brother Dhanushka Ariyaratne’s artwork gave the property its own character.
THE JOURNEY EXPANDED
Galle Fort
→Ella
→Koggala
→Talpe
→Weligama
04 / THE VISION BECAME SUGARI wanted to build
I wanted to build
something of my own.
After helping develop properties and growing my skills across Sri Lanka, I wanted to create a place around my own values: freedom with responsibility, meaningful work, human connection and the courage to make something different.
That vision became Sugar—a pioneering Sri Lankan-owned coliving idea that grew into a wider hospitality management company.
Read the birth of Sugar ↗More than seven distinctive properties—and lessons that no textbook could give.
05THE NEW TOOLKIT
CURIOSITY NEVER STOPPED
AI did not replace the experience.
It multiplied what became possible.
Today, tools including ChatGPT and Claude help me research, test ideas, improve systems and move faster across disciplines. They have become valuable working partners—helping fill gaps in my knowledge while human judgment, responsibility and hospitality experience remain at the centre.
The same childhood instinct remains: use new tools to solve real problems and make life easier for people.
01
SALES + MARKETING
CONNECTED02
DISTRIBUTION
CONNECTED03
OWNER REPORTING
ON MOBILE04
OPERATIONS
CLOUD BASED05
AI ANALYSIS
ACTIVECreative hospitality.
Commercially accountable.
What began with one struggling hotel has grown into an end-to-end system designed to help owners create better properties, stronger operations and healthier returns.
Sales & marketing
High-performance positioning, direct sales, content, social media and demand generation.
Distribution
Connected booking channels, pricing, revenue management and conversion-focused systems.
Design & architecture
Distinctive concepts shaped with specialist creative, design and architecture partners.
Finance & transparency
Cloud-based reporting and up-to-date visibility designed to help owners understand performance.
Hotel operations
Experienced management across rooms, front office, housekeeping, service and guest experience.
Food & beverage
Kitchen and service operations aligned with the property concept, quality and commercial goals.
1,000+
international volunteers have contributed across the wider journey—bringing skills, cultures, ideas and energy into our hotels.
07 / BUILT WITH PEOPLENo founder
No founder
builds alone.
For showing me that invention should make life easier.
For the first property and the opportunity that changed my direction.
For trusting me to operate that first hotel and asking, after it worked, “Shall we expand?”
For helping unlock the power of Facebook advertising when it mattered most.
For bringing original art and creative identity into the properties we built.
For trusting the vision with your properties, time and resources.
For turning ideas and systems into real human experiences every day.
For giving the work its purpose: happiness, connection and memories.
MY MEASURE OF SUCCESS
“For my happiness, I build something where people can feel uniquely happy.”
Praveen Ariyaratne
Founder · Sugar Coliving
Let’s build something
people remember.
If you own a hotel, villa or hospitality property in Sri Lanka, Sugar can support the complete journey—from concept and setup to sales, systems and daily management.
Start a conversation ↗