Radisson Red growth projected for the Middle East

Radisson Red is set to target core markets in the Middle East, with its first hotels in the region to open in 2018.

Speaking to Hotelier Middle East, The Rezidor Hotel Group senior director business development Middle East & Africa Ramsay Rankoussi said: "Radisson Red was established to capture the trend of something new, something innovative. We speak about integration of technology, a social space and hub dedicated to the millennials."

He continued: "We opened the first one recently in Brussels. We have signed one in Dubai, which is due to open within the innovation hub in the smart city in Dubai Silicon Oasis. We have another one coming up in Jeddah, and we have a pipeline of 15-20 properties worldwide – US, Europe and Asia Pacific."

The Jeddah property will open around the same time as Dubai, and will have more than 280 keys compared to Dubai's 171.

He called the brand a 'lifestyle select' and  with Elie Milky, vice president, business development Middle East & Africa said that the brand would probably be a four-star hotel in this market as it sits above mid-scale but just under upper upscale.

Rankoussi continued: "We’re targeting Radisson Red in major cities in the region; you will see growth coming up with additional properties in Dubai as a main focus, probably one in Abu Dhabi, one in Doha and probably one in Riyadh.

"So that will be our core market, [with us] eventually looking at the Middle East and GCC itself."

He revealed that in phase two of the brand's expansion, the hotel operator might look at cities like Cairo and Beirut.

The relation between the brand and the target market in the region, Rankoussi said, was important. "The highest penetration rate of online usage is in the Middle East, the youngest population is in the Middle East itself, so it’s still a massive capture market."

"Is Radisson Red being disruptive – I will tell you: yes."