Dubai: Jumeirah Group, a Dubai-based luxury hotel chain, expects to strike its first Saudi deal before the end of 2015, according to the company’s top executive.
“We hope in the next six months to have a Venu deal in Saudi Arabia,” Gerald Lawless, Jumeirah Group’s President and Chief Executive, told Gulf News in an interview on Sunday.
The group’s four-star hotel, branded Venu, is likely to open by 2018 in Jeddah.
Jumeirah, which is part of state-owned Dubai Holding, has been eyeing hotels in Saudi Arabia for a few years. The kingdom, which has a population of 29 million, has already attracted hotel chains such as Rotana Hotels, Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, Marriott International and Hyatt International. Lawless does not think Jumeirah is a late bloomer in the Saudi market.
“We have always said that to establish Jumeirah as an international brand, we have to concentrate on developments overseas and then come back into this area as an international brand, not just a regional one,” he said.
The chain operates 23 properties in the UAE, Kuwait, Maldives, China, Azerbaijan, Germany, Italy, Spain, Turkey and the UK. It has 18 projects in the pipeline.
Aside from Venu, it is looking to introduce its five-star Jumeirah Stay Different brand in the kingdom.
“We are having ongoing discussions for developments in Saudi Arabia — in Makkah, Madinah, Jeddah, Riyadh and Al Khobar … Saudi Arabia is developing at quite a pace. I believe the opportunity for tourism there is immense,” Lawless said.
Serviced residences
Jumeirah revived its four-star brand, Venu, last September after it was first introduced in 2010, in the aftermath of the global economic downturn. In February, Jumeirah signed its first Venu hotel and Venu Living serviced residences with Dubai-based developer Meraas Holding. The properties, which will be located in Bluewaters Island in Dubai, are set to open in 2017.
The company is also keen on introducing Venu in Abu Dhabi, Fujairah and Ras Al Khaimah besides the European markets such as London, Barcelona, Madrid, Berlin and Rome, as well as Asia and Africa. It plans to have 25 Venu properties globally by 2024, according to Lawless.
While he did not name the developers the chain is in talks with for future Venu properties in the UAE, he said that one of them is Meraas.
When asked about Jumeirah’s profitability since the beginning of the year, Lawless said it was “satisfactory”.
Dubai’s hotels have seen occupancy and room rates drop since the beginning of the year, which has pushed down revenue. This was due to a number of factors, including growth in hotel room supply, a weaker euro and rouble, as well as the recovery of cheaper destinations like Egypt and Lebanon
“The Russians at the luxury end haven’t been badly affected, plus we made up a lot of the business from China, the GCC [Gulf Cooperation Council] and Europe. Contrary to popular belief, Europe has been very good,” Lawless said.
In 2013, Jumeirah raised a $1.4 billion (Dh5.1 billion) unsecured syndicated loan due in 2019 to help finance its expansion.
