Ishraq Dubai L.L.C., founded in 2007, is a hospitality division of Mohammed and Obaid Al Mulla with a diverse range of hotel property names. Ishraq Dubai L.L.C. has built a well-balanced portfolio of franchised and managed hotels in the limited service, 2-star, 4-star, 5-star, and extended limited stay categories, all of which are targeted at the lively and appealing Dubai market.
Alexander Suski, Acting CEO of Ishraq Hospitality, spoke with World’s Leaders magazine about the company’s luxury hotel options and how the market has evolved in recent years.
Below are the highlights of the interview:
What is Ishraq Hospitality’s booking/renting offerings?
Each hotel in the Ishraq Dubai L.L.C. portfolio exemplifies the genuine meaning of hospitality, with customised care and attention to please even the most discriminating tourists. Our aesthetic is worldwide, with a nod to local customs and beliefs. Some of the iconic hotels in the company’s portfolio have helped to establish Dubai’s reputation as one of the world’s most dynamic and lively business and leisure destinations.
Our portfolio includes eight hotels as well as the Almulla Travel & Tourism agency.
- Crowne Plaza Dubai Deira
- Crowne Plaza Dubai Jumeirah
- Holiday Inn Express Dubai Airport
- Holiday Inn Express Dubai Safa Park
- Holiday Inn Express Jumeirah
- Holiday Inn Express Dubai Internet City
- Staybridge Suites & Holiday Inn Dubai Al-Maktoum airport
Kindly brief us about the most satisfactory experience with a client. What kind of game changing services have you provided to them?
Ensure IHG’s CLEAN PROMISE programme during the pandemic was executed to perfection – no room for error.
Building relationships with in-house guests during breakfast is the only time left to connect with guests or travellers (despite the pandemic).
How well does your organisation strategically differentiate from the competition in terms of the capabilities of its services? How clear is your organization’s strategy for this?
Ishraq Hospitality owns its assets and operates them at the same time under the world renowned IHG brand. This allows a unique strategic approach and ability to focus on core values such as quality, human capital, and adaptability to overcome a challenging period of almost 2 years (2020 and 2021). We are proud to have not let go any of our staff during this period.
What are the changes the pandemic has brought to the hotel booking and travel industry?
During the pandemic, there was a clear shift in the type of travel from very specific source markets that needed a different approach. One of those segments was travellers who needed to be quarantined, coming from all over the region, arriving back home in Dubai. A new type of business in the industry has never been seen before.
Is integrated channel management available as part of the company’s services?
Yes, this is part of our strength as Ishraq Hospitality, where we own and operate our assets under the international IHG franchise. Thanks to IHG, we are able to take full advantage of the channel management tools of a global hospitality brand.
What are the three things you would like to improve in the organisation or the sector?
Organization:
Our company vision is to further expand the Holiday Inn Express brand in the MEA region with 8 hotels in the next 7 years. We look at management, leasing, joint venture, or investment agreements to make this happen.
Secondly, we want to grow our white label hospitality management services as Ishraq Hospitality to further support hotel owners, operating and asset managing their valuable assets.
Sector:
Development of more Generation Z lifestyle types of hotels that facilitate the requirements of these travellers, despite a challenging pandemic to keep luxury hospitality experiences and services as high as pre-pandemic levels, cost-management implicated loss of some of those luxury standards, and some brands or hotels did not fall back on this.
Tell us about your vision for the company. How do you ensure a culture of integrity and innovation in the company?
We have a culture of high-performance driven by 6 core values, crucial to Ishraq Hospitality’s sustainable growth: We encourage innovation, foster synergies, value human capital, build relationships, nurture adaptability, and cultivate quality.
