Samir Daqqaq of Oetker Collection
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Travel Daily Middle East talks to Samir Daqqaq, Senior Vice-President (Development) – Middle East and Africa for Oetker Collection.
Could you elaborate on the Oetkar Hotels?
The kind of luxury that Oetkar has does not exist anymore here. The market is still virgin for it especially in this region. We see different perception of luxury but what we cater to is uber luxury. There is a huge emphasis on service in our properties. Our hotels are tailor-made to suits our customers’ needs. We embrace a person’s aspirations. It takes a lot of talent to reach this level of luxury. Our hotels are known as masterpieces in most parts of the world and there is a lot of investment put into these properties to attain such a status.
How has your journey been so far in the region?
There have been challenges here. We are the beacon of luxury and that is why development has not been an easy task in this part of the world. It has been an uphill battle. The reason being is that It is important that wherever we go people understand the criteria and formula that makes up our vision. A Classic example is the Bristol Hotel in Paris, which is understated but is visited by all the royal families in the region. This property caters to a very small niche segment but people who love to live the ‘Art of living’. We believe that it is important that we bring the right audience to the right product.
What are your expansion plans?
We are looking at a property in Dubai which would be a maximum of 200-rooms. We believe that whatever we do and build has to be an iconic hotel. It has to be the best we have to offer as we do not want to replicate it. We truly believe in building ‘one of a kind’ hotels. We have a very loyal customer base. Taking our Paris property as an example, we have a loyalty factor of 75%. This is despite the fact that we do not have a loyalty program. Our guests visit us because they appreciate this kind of service.
How do you look at working with the travel trade?
We work with select travel agents in the region who are given in-depth training on the product. We take on Preferred Sales Agents who meet our criteria and understand our product. Our agents are across the GCC, Lebanon and Egypt. It is training them on what we offer which is not just a hotel but an experience. This is done with a lot of passion.
Which other regions are in focus for brand expansion?
We are looking at Doha, Oman, very aggressively in Egypt, India and Istanbul.
How would you summarise the Oetkar offering?
We are made to measure in the quality we bring to our guests. All our hotels have two or three star Michelin chefs wherein our guests indulge in the ‘Art of Gourmet’. The same can be said for the well-being aspect, we take the concept of a spa very seriously. We invest a lot of money in a spa wherein we offer treatments from beauty to even medical. We also engage the local community in our spa and gourmet offerings.
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