São Paulo – Jumeirah, which owns some of the most luxurious hotels in the United Arab Emirates, has its eye on Brazil. This week, Stephan Schupbach, the general manager of Jumeirah Zabeel Saray hotel, in Dubai, is visiting the country. Although he says that the main reason for his trip is to learn about local customs, he pointed out that his company plans to come here. “We are seeking an investor who is looking for an operator. Then, we will be very interested in operating a hotel in Brazil,” he said to ANBA while visiting the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, in São Paulo.
Schupbach’s objective is not just to find partners here, but to strengthen the ties with those he already has. During his stay in Brazil, which should also include Rio de Janeiro, the executive has met with representatives of travel agencies that offer packages to the Emirates and that book rooms for their clients in Jumeirah hotels. The company target is to take more Brazilian guests to the Arab world. “We started operating in the country two or three years ago and today have 20 local partners. We want to have at least 100 partners in coming years,” he explained.
The company has not come here yet as it had other plans to conclude, said the executive. “We are a very new company (created in 1997) and, first of all, we wanted to grow our business on the domestic market,” he explained. Schupbach pointed out that the growth of Emirates airline in Brazil is carefully watched by Jumeirah. He said that the airline opens doors to “crowded and large” cities, like Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. “The right project at the right opportunity definitely interests us,” he said.
Emirates has direct flights from São Paulo to Dubai and, in January 2012, should also start flying to Rio de Janeiro. The company also operates cargo flights to Viracopos airport, in Campinas, a city approximately 100 kilometres away from São Paulo, and plans to operate the Airbus A380, the largest passenger aircraft in the world, between Dubai and São Paulo.
Jumeirah owns one of the most famous and luxurious hotels in the world, Burj Al Arab. Apart from addresses in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, the company manages hotels in Frankfurt, London, New York, Shanghai and the Maldives. This month, the company aims to inaugurate a new hotel in Abu Dhabi and, in December, another in the Maldives.
*Translated by Mark Ament
