DUBAI — Accor, the world’s leading augmented hospitality group, is mapping out its blueprint for accelerated growth in the Middle East & Africa (MEA) at this week’s Arabian Hotel Investment Conference (AHIC) 2019.
The rapidly-expanding Group currently operates over 260 properties with 60,000+ rooms across 36 countries in the region. With more than 20 projects opening in 2019 alone, the Group is highlighting strong development opportunities for its unrivalled portfolio of residences, extended-stay and lifestyle brands, as well as the growth potential for all-inclusive luxury resorts, at the annual hospitality industry forum in Ras Al Khaimah on April 9-11, 2019.
“We have identified a strong consumer appetite for innovative hotels, residences and resorts that have a distinct lifestyle and entertainment focus in strategically-important markets region wide,” explained Mark Willis, CEO, Accor Middle East & Africa.
“With our unrivalled portfolio of brands, agile approach to development and attractive business models, Accor is partnering with like-minded owners and investors to introduce concepts that anticipate current and future guest demands, adding meaningful value in an increasingly competitive market place and offering robust return on investment.”
Willis is one of the high-profile speakers at AHIC’s ‘Synching for Success’ panel session, and will discuss which business models will retain and attract more owners against a backdrop of increased hotel room supply.
Accor now offers the largest and most diversified portfolio of lifestyle brands in the industry, providing owners with a unique proposition – the opportunity to invest in curated brands and collaborate with their maverick founders and CEOs, while simultaneously leveraging the strength of one of the world’s leading hospitality groups in terms of distribution, loyalty, procurement, regional expertise and more.
The Group’s augmented lifestyle portfolio currently includes Jo&Joe, Mama Shelter, partnerships with 25Hours and sbe Entertainment (including the Delano, SLS, The House of Originals, Mondrian and Hyde brands) and most recently its midscale brand, Tribe, identifying the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and Oman as target growth markets.
Its regional expansion campaign for these concepts is gaining momentum with the first Mama Shelter, 25Hours and SLS properties all on track to make their Middle East debut in 2020 with hotly-anticipated launches in Dubai. — SG
