HMH Hospitality Management Holdings (HMH) is all set to boost its existing portfolio of hotels by 20 per cent in 2014. HMH is a fully-integrated hotel management company with 20 operational properties featuring an inventory of 3,250 keys under four brands.
The group has four main brands in its portfolio – Coral Hotels & Resorts, Corp Executive Hotels, ECOS Hotels and Ewa Hotel Apartments – with properties spread across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq and Sudan. 2013 was a landmark year, especially for the Corp Executive Hotels brand with the launch of two properties – Corp Executive Hotel Amman and Corp Executive Al Khoory Hotel Al Wasl, Dubai.
The group has laid out a strategy of sustainable growth, with a sharp focus on the UAE, according to the group’s newly-appointed CEO, Laurent Voivenel. “In terms of our gross operating profit (GOP) all our brands are in the same bracket. However, as we have more Coral hotels, the percentage of business is much higher for Coral,” he says.
“Having said that,” adds Voivenel, “all our properties have done exceedingly well in terms of occupancy and RevPar, particularly in countries such as the UAE and KSA. Other destinations like Baghdad, Amman, Beirut, Khartoum and Port Sudan did pretty well too, with seasonal dips depending on the market conditions often determined by political situation in the region. With a little bit more stability we could have done better.”
Since Voivenel took the helm at HMH last October, he has set a new tone for the company’s future, evident from his strategy for the group. “Building on our strong record, we are stepping into a new era with a brand new approach that is proactive, strategic, innovative, collaborative and integrative,” he says. “Strengthening our management team, sharpening our brand image, developing new multi-lingual websites, launching new loyalty programmes and opening five new properties are just some of the exciting activities lined up for 2014.”
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“My philosophy is to start by understanding what our capabilities are and then finding the best suited opportunities,” says Voivenel, who brings to HMH over 28 years of hotel management experience with some of the world’s leading international hospitality brands such as Starwood Hotels and Resorts and Hilton Hotels & Resorts. “HMH has come a long way from its modest beginnings in 2003. It is an exciting challenge for me to take up the reins at this momentous moment when the organisation has just completed 10 eventful years since its formation and lead it into the next decade.”
Voivenel plans to propagate a three-pronged strategic approach ensuring maximum returns on investment for partners, value and experience for our customers and growth opportunities for employees. “We will work closely with the different departments to improve performance and establish a new, fully integrated system that will add to our efficiency. At the same time, as we embark on the implementation of next strategic plan, continued fiscal discipline, superior service and quality control remain central to our objectives,” he says.
Expansion is on the cards but Voivenel is not in a rush to add to the HMH portfolio outside of the region. “Our expansion plans are, at the moment, sharply focused on the UAE, followed by the GCC. We are certainly keen to put our foot in Asia as well, but we are definitely not in a hurry to do so, given the extent of our ongoing development in the Middle East. Having said that, Asia – especially Indonesia, Malaysia and China – are some of the countries we will be looking at, hopefully by 2015.”
The home-grown Emirati company was founded in 2003 and opened its first hotel in the UAE. It has now gained the reputation for being the first hotel chain in the Middle East to offer an alcohol-free environment. “Being an alcohol-free hotel group, we have had an amazing response from around the world be it the Pan Arab countries, Europe, south Asia, far-east Asia, Africa, North America, Canada and Mexico, South America or Australasia. Moving forward, we are certainly keen to expand our share of emerging markets such as China, Nordic countries, Brazil, Latin America and CIS and Baltic states,” says Voivenel.
Dubai’s successful World Expo 2020 bid will prove to be a massive stimulant for HMH as it will for the entire region’s meetings industry accelerating economic growth and development, adds Voivenel. “Meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (Mice) is a very significant market and we definitely wish to have greater visibility there.”
The Expo will deliver global exposure for the UAE and its tourism sector, including its world-class infrastructure. “Those arriving to visit Expo 2020 will be open to discovering other parts of the country and its many facets, both from a cultural and tourism perspective so we expect all emirates to benefit. Being based in the UAE, it will no doubt unlock a world of opportunities for HMH and our various brands.
The company is currently in talks with certain entities to explore opportunities for its brands in Dubai World Central (DWC), the Expo 2020 site, although nothing is definite yet. “Our goal is to double the number of our hotels in the UAE by 2020. Hopefully, we are on the right track,” concludes Voivenel.
By Shilpa Chandran