With over 18 years of operational, financial and senior experience, François Kassab joined Millennium & Copthorne Middle East and Africa as chief financial officer and chief investment officer in May 2015 and was appointed as chief operating officer in January 2016.

In his current role, Kassab assumes responsibility for the strategic development of the group, overseeing its extensive expansion plans across the region, including the mid-market brand Studio M.

MID-MARKET EXPECTATIONS

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“In general we see an appetite in the Middle East and Africa for mid-market growth,” Kassab begins. “It is actually not a new concept in most of these countries; many hotel companies have had mid-market [brands] here, but now it is really starting to grow.” Kassab is keen to point out that Studio M has been operational in Singapore since 2010, with great success. “What you can expect from Studio M in this region is a lot of innovations, it is a young and high-tech brand,” says Kassab, noting that the first property in Dubai is now expected in 2017.

Originally the Studio M brand was scheduled for launch in this region in 2014, to which Kassab commented: “Studio M is a very important brand for us, so we have spent considerable time researching and planning, to ensure we build a brand that stands out from its competitors and targets the correct market segments. Since 2014, we have been working hard to ensure we launch the brand successfully in the market and we are now very excited to be in a position with several projects in construction in UAE, Oman and KSA.”

He adds: “Based on the strong interest we have had from investors we are confident that Studio M will continue to make a significant impact in the market and we are excited to have further announcements later this year relating to the expansion of the brand throughout the Middle East.”

The importance of the mid-market sector to the overall strategy of Millennium & Copthorne is no secret, Kassab says: “It is important because today we see the demand coming from this sector, especially from a development point of view. The number of [mid-market] hotels you can bring to a market is different, there is more demand because you can put more properties in a city, when compared to the locations of luxury and four- and five-star hotels and resorts.” He adds: “This is because the number of people who can afford the mid-market is much greater, and from cost of development point of view it is cheaper to build.”

MARKET GROWTH

From a strategic point of view, Kassab highlights the transition a market goes through before the mid-market sec-tor becomes developed: “In our experience in hospitality, you start in the upper five-star sector, then the mid-market will follow; for example we are now expecting Saudi Arabia to demand more and more mid-range hotels, and we expect the appetite from investors will come too – especially we have seen this trend already in Oman.”

In response to the anticipated market growth, Kassab points out that Millennium & Copthorne is keen to take ad-vantage of new markets: “We have more mid-market properties planned in Riyadh, Muscat and Abu Dhabi too.”

Understanding your target market is cental to the strategy in place for Studio M, Kassab says: “In every source market you will see a diversity of guests with different needs; you have to cater to all of them. It’s also about the age and the capacity to spend, so in EU and USA you will see a journey of a consumer moving from budget, to mid-market, to luxury as people grow through life.”

He suggests this varies based upon usage and the requirements of each guest segment, noting corporate travel-lers and families need different things and their length of stay changes too. “We expect our customers to be loyal to the brand and to move through our product offerings as they move through life.”