Paul Evans Paul Evans

General manager of Boutique 7 Hotel & Suites, Paul Evans, explains how he intends to “slay” the giant hotels surrounding his independent property

Paul Evans has been many things in his life. He began his career in 1976 as a trainee manager having to do the washing and ironing in a boarding house in Cardiff, Wales.

Being not quite as inspiring a role as he had hoped for, he decided to join the army and became a captain, before ditching the military life to become a social worker.

He then returned to hospitality and worked for the likes of Marriott and Hilton among others, but this journeyman has now taken on a new role — giant slayer.

Last December, Evans became the general manager of Boutique 7 Hotel & Suites, a 79-apartment property in Tecom, Dubai, that is about to undergo a radical transformation.

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Formerly known as the Mazoon Apartments, the focus was on long-stay tenants who benefitted from kitchens in the rooms, not ideal for a hotel that wants to drive business into its restaurants.

As Evans asserts “the shop opposite was making a fortune off of us”.

But the kitchens are just one of many challenges in converting the property into a successful, small independent hotel, while being surrounded by branded corporate giants.

It is no wonder Evans tells us he “had a headache yesterday for the first time in a few months”.

“As an independent hotel we don’t have the exposure that a Marriott, Hilton, all these other properties have and that is a drawback. I see us as a bit like David fighting Goliath,” Evans tells us.

“I am surrounded by huge companies and I am the little guy here trying to punch above his weight.”

So how does Evans plan to overcome this disadvantage in a ferociously competitive market?

“My intention is to slay them in so many ways — by being unique in what we do and developing our product in a different way. Being an independent hotel we can be more flexible, okay they [large brands] can react as quickly as we can, but what they can’t do is have the flexibility I have.”

Evans says he works “hand in hand” with the owner of the property, founder and chairman of Boutique 7, Abr Khalfan Mhammd Khalfan Abdulla al Hamll, allowing him to “make decisions while I am running”, rather than having to report up a chain of management.

“All my staff and management team are in direct contact with me on a daily basis and I know exactly what is going on in the hotel. Whereas with corporations, by the time it gets to the managing director it has been diluted so many times he really doesn’t know what is occurring around us at the time,” he adds.

Furthermore, Evans believes that being an independent allows guests to feel more appreciated — he says the hotel will know a guest’s likes and dislikes so that they will feel like an extended family member.

“The only way I can compete with these giants around me is maintaining that individuality and understanding what the guests want.”

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