Belmond Appoints David Grossniklaus as Senior Director for Development in Middle East, Africa & India

. February 08, 2017

DUBAI, U.A.E. February 8, 2017 - Belmond announced the appointment of David Grossniklaus as Senior Director of Development Middle East, Africa and India, effective December 2016.

Based in Belmond's newly-opened development office in the heart of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), in the United Arab Emirates, Mr. Grossniklaus will focus on growing Belmond's footprint across the region with new hotel developments and conversion opportunities.

Kenneth Hatton, Senior Vice President for Global Development commented, “David joins Belmond at an exciting time of growth, as we move forward with the strategic plan to double the footprint of the Company by 2020. We are keen to pursue acquisition and management opportunities across the Middle East and Indian Ocean and the experience and expertise that David brings to the role will be valuable assets to this endeavour, and a tremendous springboard for the launch of our first office in the region.”

“I am very pleased to be opening Belmond's development office, contributing to the expansion of the Belmond brand in the Middle East, Indian Ocean, Africa and India. I believe Belmond is well recognised by both travellers and investors as the leading luxury owner and operator of hotels, trains and cruises and our future developments will continue to create memorable and unique travel experiences for our customers”, Mr. Grossniklaus said.

With more than 16 years of hospitality industry experience, Mr. Grossniklaus joins Belmond from Starwood Hotels & Resorts, where he held the position of Associate Director Acquisitions and Development for the Middle East and Africa. During the course of his three years at Starwood, he closed a number of prominent deals across the GCC, Ethiopia, Lebanon and South Africa.

Having first worked with Belmond during an internship as eDistribution Manager in 2002 while studying at Ecole Hoteliere de Lausanne, Mr. Grossniklaus has since taken roles with Deloitte/STR Global, as well as Fairmont-Raffles Hotels International, working on new development for Swissotel.

Mr. Grossniklaus previously relocated to Dubai in 2008, when he joined Nakheel Hotels/Istithmar, a DP World entity, where he was actively involved in analyzing new acquisitions, Joint-Venture valuations, equity investments and existing assets performance.

A desire to build upon his knowledge saw Mr. Grossniklaus travel to London to take on an Executive MBA at CASS Business School - City University, and he is passionate about travelling to explore cultural and historical sites around the world. A Swiss national fluent in French and English, when not in the office, he enjoys photography, diving and fitness.

More information on Belmond's development can be found at belmond.com/development.

About Belmond Ltd

Belmond Ltd. is a global portfolio of luxury travel experiences including hotels, trains, cruises and safaris in some of the world's most inspiring and enriching destinations. Established almost 40 years ago with the acquisition of Hotel Cipriani in Venice, the Company owns and operates 47 unique and distinctive hotel, rail and river cruise experiences in many of the world's most celebrated destinations. From city landmarks to intimate resorts, the collection includes Belmond Grand Hotel Europe, St. Petersburg; Belmond Copacabana Palace, Rio de Janeiro; Belmond Maroma Resort & Spa, Riviera Maya; and Belmond El Encanto, Santa Barbara. Belmond also encompasses safaris, eight luxury tourist trains including the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, three river cruises and '21', one of New York's most storied restaurants. belmond.com

Contact:
Suhanna Yazami
[email protected]
+65 6908 0769

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