BERLIN — Dubai-based white-label management company Aleph Hospitality has been managing hotels in Africa for nearly a decade, with founder and CEO Bani Haddad saying the company enjoys seeking out vibrant destinations for others may show more concern.
Speaking exclusively to Hotel News Now at the International Hotel Investment Forum, Haddad said his company’s experience and early-mover advantage in vast, diverse, maturing Africa “has been very good for investors and brands”.
Aleph currently operates 12 hotels, most of which are located in Africa.
Of its 12 hotels, 10 are located in Africa, in the countries of Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Rwanda, Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
He said the company’s success stemmed from its boldness to familiarize itself with African markets.
“We knew the markets very well and were brave enough to enter markets where others did not want to go. … We had an opportunity to expand very quickly in those markets,” he said.
He said growth across the continent opens up opportunities for companies like Aleph.
“Over the past few years, we’ve seen the markets mature, both from an investor perspective and from a brand perspective. Both of these components are now looking for third-party, independent operators,” he said.
He added that Alef is looking for opportunities in Chad.
Haddad said that while Middle Eastern owners often wanted trophy assets, for what he called “return on ego”, this was not the case in Africa.
“The change from [African] investors is a move from [developing] themselves with the knowledge they have to make it a little more professional, whether it’s the development, the construction, finding the right location, the right development team, the contractors, the architects, the designers, but also the right financing” . he said. “That’s the change we’ve seen in the last five years.”
There are still challenges in the market and these are exacerbated by outsiders.
“The cost of borrowing if you borrow from Africa is extremely high. The risk of currency inflation is extremely high in many of these countries,” he said.
For more of Haddad’s comments, watch the video linked above.
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