Jumeirah hires senior exec for Asia Pacific growth

Jumeirah Group, the Dubai-based luxury hotel company, said on Sunday it has appointed a senior executive to drive expansion of the brand in Asia Pacific.

Jumeirah said in a statement that it has hired US national James Mabey as senior vice president development for the Asia Pacific region.

For the past two and a half years he has been working for Marco Polo Hotels and previously held positions in TGR Asia, the Royal Thai Government and the International Resort Development Group.

In his new role, Mabey will be based in Jumeirah's Singapore office and will be responsible for securing new management contracts for hotels and serviced apartments that meet Jumeirah's luxury standards throughout Asia Pacific.

Robert Swade, Jumeirah Group's chief officer for development & legal, said: "I am delighted to welcome James Mabey to the team. Asia Pacific is central to Jumeirah's international growth strategy and the appointment of James demonstrates our commitment to further brand expansion in the region."

In 2011 Jumeirah opened its first luxury property in China, the 401-room Jumeirah Himalayas Hotel Shanghai.

The company has signed five other management agreements for hotels that are under development in China.

These include Jumeirah Clearwater Bay Resort in Sanya, a 250-room hotel with 50 private villas; Jumeirah Guangzhou, a 207-room hotel that occupies the uppermost floors of the 50-storey GT Land Plaza; Jumeirah Hangzhou, a 209-room hotel in the business district of Qianjiang Rive New Town; Jumeirah Thousand Islands Lake Resort, Qiandaohu, a luxury hotel with 89 guest rooms and a further 48 rooms in villas dotted among the trees of the surrounding forest; and Jumeirah Macau, a planned 250-room hotel with views of the Macau Dome.

The construction of the properties in Guangzhou, Sanya and Hangzhou is already well advanced and the company expects to start pre-opening activities within the next 18 months.

In addition, Jumeirah Group has signed management agreements to operate hotels in Bali, Indonesia and Bangkok, Thailand.

The company is engaged in further negotiations to operate five-star luxury hotels and resorts in other key locations throughout the Asia Pacific region, Jumeirah said in the statement.