Dunes Oud Metha offers spacious, fully fitted studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom apartments.
Rahman notes that continual employee training is necessary for both junior and senior employees in pursuit of this goal. “Leadership skills and customer service training are at the heart of our training sessions. We use external training suppliers, bringing them here to train our people; we tell them what packages we require, we develop a schedule together and they provide their services, says Rahman.
“This method of investing into our employees has shown good results; so much so that every six months at a minimum we will conduct new training in different areas of service,” he adds.
Rahman acknowledges this level of commitment to his employees can be challenging, both from a financial and organisational perspective, but he adds that it is vital to the hotels ongoing success. “We try different providers, however we do use the same ones occasionally – but we are open to trying new and interesting packages; some a very specific, others are tailored to the mid-market and to our needs and our guests needs,” he says.
“We offer guests a bespoke and tailor-made experience, this is at the core of our philosophy – we concentrate on every aspect of the trip; from visa applications and airport transfers, to dinner cruises and desert safaris. We believe it is important to provide the whole experience – and we can arrange it all well in advance,” says Rahman. “Once we send the confirmation booking, we then develop a personal conversation about tailoring their experience; so we ensure the best possible experience for our guests.”
The influx of mid-market properties in the region has led Rahman to strengthen his commitment to quality.
“The budget and mid-market is really coming up now in the MENA region; you will see a price war here in the near future.
But Dubai is really becoming progressive with the economy hotel sector; especially in terms of attractions like world-leading theme parks. Dubai Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) is very much focused and doing their best to bring people to the emirate. The quality of attractions will definitely be here – quality accommodation should match.” Speaking of the guest perception of the economy sector, Rahman said: “Mid-market perceptions in Dubai are not that low in terms of guest expectations, there is very high standards in this emirate, and DTCM also has these expectations of hoteliers.”
Rahman says Dunes meets expectations because it delivers exactly what it offers. “Everyone can have high occupancy here, guests are diverse and they all have unique needs; we can all offer something special.”
He adds that Dunes does not lower rates during slow periods, prefering to offer higher standards over reduced rates to attract people during quiet times. “Big chains are coming here, that create big challenges for small independent hotels; but with extraordinary service and the right digital marketing – it is possible to thrive – we are proof of that.”
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