BERLIN — Dubai-based white-label management firm Aleph Hospitality has been active in hotel management in Africa for almost a decade, with its founder and managing director, Bani Haddad, saying the firm enjoys seeking vibrant destinations others might show more trepidation toward.
Speaking exclusively to Hotel News Now at the International Hotel Investment Forum, Haddad said his firm’s experience and early-mover advantage in huge, varied, maturing Africa “has been very good for the investors and the brands.”
Aleph currently operates 12 hotels, most of which are in Africa.
Of its pipeline of 12 hotels, 10 are in Africa, in the countries of Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Rwanda, Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
He said the firm’s success has come from its daring to become familiar with African markets.
“We knew the markets very well, and we were courageous enough to venture into markets where others did not want to go to. … We had the opportunity to expand really fast in these markets,” he said.
He said growth across the continent opens opportunities for companies like Aleph.
“In the last few years, we’ve seen the markets maturing, both from the investors’ standpoint but also from the brand’s standpoint. Both of these constituents are now looking for third-party, independent operators,” he said.
He added that Aleph is looking at opportunities in Chad.
Haddad said while Middle Eastern owners often wanted trophy assets, for what he called “return on ego,” that is not the case for Africa.
“The change from [African] investors is a move from [developing] themselves with the knowledge they have to making it a little more professional, whether it is from the development side, construction, finding the right location, having the right development team, contractors, architects, designers, but also having the financing properly packaged,” he said. “This is the shift we have seen in the last five years.”
There remain challenges in the market, and those are exacerbated by those looking from outside.
“The cost of borrowing if you are borrowing from Africa is extremely high. The risk of inflation on the currency is extremely high in many of these countries,” he said.
For more of Haddad’s comments, please watch the video linked above.