Silves, Portugal, Sept. 11, 2025 (Lusa) - Fábrica do Inglês, in Silves, Algarve, a cultural entertainment complex that closed in 2010, is to be rehabilitated to reopen the existing Cork Museum and a boutique hotel, the buyers have announced.
The complex was acquired by property developers Antrix and Carvoeiro Branco, who plan to rehabilitate the complex's historic buildings, reopen the Cork Museum and create a boutique hotel with 50 rooms, as part of an investment of €25 million, according to a statement.
The works, which are due to begin in 2026, with an estimated completion time of two to three years, include the rehabilitation and revitalisation of the 19th-century complex, including the old chalet, which will be restored to continue operating as a tea house.
Speaking to Lusa, Erik de Vlieger, founder of Carvoeiro Branco, said that the starting point is the reopening of the museum, which was honoured in 2001 as the best industrial museum in Europe - the year in which it received more than 100,000 visitors - and he estimates that it could reopen before the summer of next year.
‘The opportunity to, almost heroically, bring back to life such an emblematic space - which ended up being left abandoned after a last ill-conducted investment - represents not only a challenge, but also a duty of patrimonial responsibility,’ he said.
Inside one of the rehabilitated historic buildings, the future offices of Antrix and Carvoeiro Branco, which are based in the Algarve, are also scheduled to be installed, as part of a project expected to create around 80 new jobs.
Without wishing to announce the value of the acquisition, he emphasised that the vacant and deteriorating state of the Fábrica do Inglês contrasted with its immense value in terms of architectural, cultural and historical heritage.
"The weight of its history, linked to the industrial memory of the Algarve and the daily lives of so many generations, made the need to intervene even more urgent. Today, we have before us the possibility of restoring the splendour of this building and putting it back at the service of the community and the region," he concluded.
The Fábrica do Inglês was built in 1894 as a cork processing plant.
In 1908, Victor Sadler, a British citizen, was hired to manage the factory, which became forever associated with his identity and the origin of the name ‘Fábrica do Inglês’.
After the closure of the industrial activity, the complex was rehabilitated and, in 1999, opened to the public as the Cork Museum. In the following years, it also hosted concerts, exhibitions and cultural events, reinforcing its role as a dynamic cultural centre.
The centre remained active for several years after its conversion, but eventually closed in 2010 following the insolvency of the management company.
The space was classified as a Monument of Municipal Interest, and it was proposed that it be classified as a Monument of Public Interest (MIP), a process that was never finalised.
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