easyHotel plc, the owner, developer, operator and franchisor of “super budget” branded hotels, has signed a Master Development Partnership with MAN Investments LLC (a UAE owned commercial and investment group), to develop easyHotels in the Middle East.
MAN Investments will focus its new developments in the UAE and Oman, and the new easyHotels are expected to comprise new purpose-built assets and conversions of existing hotel and/or office buildings. MAN Investments’ development program targets an initial opening of 600 rooms by 2017. Following these openings, MAN Investments are targeting at least 1,600 rooms by the end of 2020.
MAN Investments has already secured land or properties which will accommodate the 2017 openings. For example, the first hotel will be a 300 room easyHotel built in the Bur Dubai area of Dubai. Bur Dubai is recognised as being the trading hub of Dubai and the UAE. This flagship project will mark the start of intensive development under the new Master Development Partnership across these regions. easyHotel will enter into a franchise agreement for each hotel which will be developed.
This partnership has been signed against a backdrop of continued growth in the UAE and Oman and in particular Dubai governmental support for the building of budget hotels, ahead of Dubai hosting the World Expo, Expo 2020. The Dubai Ministry of Tourism is targeting growth of more than 30% in inbound tourism, to 20 million by 2021.
Great cultural fit
Guy Parsons, Chief Executive of easyHotel said,
“We are delighted to enter into this new partnership with MAN Investments. MAN has established a significant geographical foothold in the region in a number of business areas, many of which are targeted towards value conscious consumers, which makes them a great cultural fit for easyHotel. With land prices currently at a premium, their capacity for speed and scale of development is impressive and a considerable competitive advantage.
“We expect the partnership to drive rapid growth for the easyHotel brand in the Middle East that should deliver further shareholder value. The partnership will greatly improve brand awareness in the Middle East, giving us a platform to consider further opportunities in the region.”
A spokesperson for MAN said,
“We are excited to be partnering with the easyHotel brand. We see a significant gap in the budget sector in the entire region. Currently there are no hotel brands offering a combination of great value and superb quality and we feel that easyHotel is perfectly designed to take advantage of this opportunity.”
For more information click here
htm sponsor hotel information at H&C News
The post easyHotel signs Master Development partnership for Middle East appeared first on Hospitality & Catering News.