Hospitality Disruptor

HOSPITALITY DISRUPTOR

What Makes FIVE Unique?

Kabir Mulchandani and the team have worked hard to ensure that with FIVE, potential investors get more than just a real estate development opportunity. They receive a supportive team of experienced professionals who are committed to creating the highest quality product possible to ensure healthy returns on investment. Key to this product is FIVE’s focus on making sustainability central to its strategy from development to brand design. Kabir has built the culture of the ‘FIVE Tribe’ to ensure they strive for excellence in everything they do, from customer service to construction.

As a brand, Kabir has become a hotelier with a difference, as opposed to focussing on the hotel with food and beverage, entertainment and experience being secondary to the rooms. Kabir has been known to say ‘FIVE is not just a hotel, we are an entertainment venue with beds. The rooms are a support function to what we do best.. the pool, entertainment, the musicians, artists and fashion shows are our core story and our core business.’ His ability to turn the business model on its head with signature entertainment in focus has lead to the FIVE hotel and resorts group being able to compete with stand alone restaurants, nightclubs and hotels unlike other destinations.

Leadership

Kabir Mulchandani believes in leading from the front and beside, which has resulted in him building a leadership team who also believes in living up to the standard they want others to follow. That standard has resulted in a diverse and inclusive workforce led by some of the brightest minds in the sector.

As a disruptive, innovative, eco-conscious visionary Kabir shares his success with an elite leadership team including.

Nadia Zaal Mulchandani

EMIRATI ENTREPRENEUR AND NON-EXECUTIVE AND NON-INDEPENDENT DIRECTOR OF FIVE HOLDINGS

Nadia Zaal Mulchandani is a remarkable Emirati entrepreneur who has left an indelible mark on the real estate and hospitality industry, named by ‘Forbes as the 100 Most Powerful Women’ in the Middle East. As the co-founder of Zaya Group, a boutique developer specialising in high-end real estate development and hospitality, Nadia was instrumental in developing the iconic Nurai Island. Her passion for sustainability is evident in the project as it features the region’s first floating solar plant, public solar lighting, and electric buggies for transportation. The innovative ‘green carpet’ concept is another example of Nadia’s vision and mission to create sustainable luxury real estate.

Nadia’s expertise in the field of real estate and hospitality was further solidified when she became the CEO of Al Barari Group. Here, Nadia was the driving force behind the creation of the Al Barari project, which was designed to target the premium segment of the real estate market while focusing on sustainability and eco-conservation. Al Barari is known as the region’s lowest-density lush microclimate community. Nadia’s attention to detail is reflected in the ample community spaces, the focus on greening practices, and the recycling of grey water and green waste for composting.

Nadia Zaal Mulchandani is also the wife of FIVE Chairman and Founder, Kabir Mulchandani.

Aloki Batra

CEO, FIVE HOSPITALITY

Aloki Batra is a dynamic entrepreneur who has been instrumental in the success of FIVE Hospitality. As a co-founding member of FIVE, Aloki has been recognized as one of the ‘Top 100 CEOs in the Middle East’ by Forbes ME in 2022. His relentless efforts to integrate sustainability and technology into the business have earned FIVE the recognition of being one of the ‘Most Innovative Companies of the Year in 2022’ by Fast Company Middle East, making it the only Hospitality Group to be included in the annual list.

As the CEO of FIVE Hospitality, Aloki has been a driving force behind the company’s success. He has created a seamless ecosystem with high-quality property hardware and cutting-edge experiential software, which has allowed the brand to drive high performance and consistently outperform its competitors.
Aloki focuses on creating bespoke ‘Vibe at FIVE’ experiences, blending F&B, nightlife, and hotels under one roof, resulting in higher direct brand revenue and growing direct bookings. He is the mastermind behind FIVE‘s renowned dining concepts, such as The Penthouse, Cinque, Maiden Shanghai, Soul St, and The Mansion, catering to Dubai’s multicultural diaspora. Aloki’s expertise in crafting immersive nightlife, entertainment, hospitality and culinary has established FIVE as an F&B powerhouse in Dubai.

Nabil Akiki

CEO, FIVE DEVELOPMENT

Nabil Akiki, a co-founding member of FIVE, is a visionary in the field of architecture and design. With over two decades of experience, Akiki leads the design, development, and construction management of FIVE’s projects and has a proven track record of delivering world-class developments. From hospitals to commercial, residential and luxury hotels, Akiki has a wealth of experience in diverse developments of mixed use.

Nabil Akiki holds a first-class degree from INBA in Beirut and a Master‘s in Architecture from the École Spéciale d’Architecture in Paris, where he graduated as Majeur De Promotion. His education and experience have allowed him to bring a global perspective to FIVE‘s projects, and his commitment to excellence has earned him and his team over 41 regional and international awards. With Nabil at the helm, FIVE continues to push the boundaries of design and construction, delivering truly exceptional projects that reflect the company’s commitment to excellence.

Jaydeep Anand

GROUP CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER AND GROUP CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER, FIVE HOTELS AND RESORTS

Jaydeep Anand is a co-founding member of FIVE and brings a unique combination of deep experience and relentless innovation to both the company culture and finances. With his mantra of "Synergy, Creativity, and Long-term Strategic Forward Thinking," he has built the FIVE Tribe, a collection of multi-cultural and multi-faceted colleagues who are dedicated to a thriving work environment. As a result, FIVE has been recognized as the Best Hotel Group and a Top 10 Workplace for Women in the Middle East by Great Places to Work.

Jaydeep Anand‘s expertise in finance has played a crucial role in securing USD 200 million to acquire FIVE LUXE, a loan worth USD 70 million against FIVE Jumeirah Village, and CHF 50 million for FIVE Zurich’s premises. As CFO and COO, he combines his engineering expertise with a Cornell MBA to drive the implementation of cutting-edge technology and operational efficiency, all rooted in sophisticated financial strategy. Under his leadership, FIVE has secured a 100% LEED Platinum hotel portfolio and SPIRE Smart Building ratings, becoming the first and only hotel group to achieve UL’s cutting-edge building certification. Anand’s passion for sustainability and reducing carbon footprint has set new precedents in the luxury hospitality industry.

Consistently Winning

With a digital first ethos, FIVE hotel and resorts enjoys over 54% of its bookings coming in directly through FIVE’s own proprietary website and reservations team. To compare, other leading luxury brands only experience an average of 25% direct bookings. Kabir Mulchandani believes in utilising leading edge hardware and cutting-edge experiential software that creates a seamless guest experience.

Having created some of the most innovative real estate developments around, Kabir Mulchandani and the team at FIVE have a proven track record of success. No matter what a stakeholder needs or envisions, FIVE are sure to be able to make it happen and the proof is in the pudding with an extensive list of accolades including over 150 awards;

100% LEED Platinum Hotel Portfolio and SPIRE Smart Building Ratings for its Dubai hotels, emerging among the top rated smart and sustainable luxury properties in the world
FIVE Jumeirah Village won the International Property Awards Arabia 2022 for Leisure Architecture
FIVE Zurich won the award for Commercial Renovation/Redevelopment at the International Property Awards Europe 2022
FIVE LUXE, JBR has been awarded the Best Future Project at Design Middle East’s Architecture Leaders Awards 2022.
FIVE was also awarded the Most Innovative Company at Fast Company Awards 2022
Great place to work award, Five Hotels and Resorts ranked 6th among the Best Workplaces in the UAE 2022

This comes as no surprise as Kabir Mulchandani is very clear about his hiring philosophy, he has built a people-first culture right across FIVE’s hotels and resorts. A culture he describes as being “based on hiring people who love people. Where we constantly ask the question, ‘what do we, as consumers, want to feel’. Because once you are providing value, there is money to be made. Guests will keep coming back.”

The FIVE Tribe

With any brand as expansive as FIVE, much of the success comes from attracting and nurturing the right talent. Affectionately and powerfully known as the FIVE Tribe, FIVE’s workforce is a large factor behind the continued success of FIVE.

The FIVE Hotels and Resorts brand was built with people in mind and operates on the principles of a shared collaborative process with shared success. The company has a strong belief in team building and places great importance on creating a positive and supportive work environment. This commitment to its employees has earned FIVE a reputation as one of the best places to work, winning numerous awards in recognition of its efforts.

The company also offers some of the highest incentives in the hotel industry, further solidifying its commitment to its employees and their well-being all while inspiring the inner-entrepreneur in all its colleagues. In 2021 Aon Hewitt reported FIVE’s incentives as 318% higher than its peers. The FIVE Tribe culture is what sets FIVE apart from the rest, with over 1500 FIVE Tribe members (aka employees) from over 70 nationalities, Kabir Mulchandani and his management team focus on personality driven recruitment practices. Which is why the focus is on investing in employees with learning, skill development and leadership training and building productive working environments. Which has led FIVE Hotel and Resorts to have award winning results, including being named as the #1 hospitality company in the Middle East beating a series of global brands and being on the “Great Places to Work” list for the last 5 years.

The Vible

The ‘Vible’ , the ‘vibe bible’ , a unique term coined by Kabir Mulchandani, is all about creating a collective experience that combines music, food, art and fashion. With a focus on bespoke events, the team generates unforgettable experiences for guests which further solidifies FIVE as the ‘it’ destination for millennials. The FIVE team conceptualises and hosts around 35 events each week, from bohemian mini-festivals to ladies’ night fashion shows, a variety of pool parties, club nights and brunch events.

The goal is for guests to have so much to do, that they never need to leave the property to have a world of fun.

With their Vible, FIVE is a leader in creating a new type of hotel experience that goes beyond just a place to sleep, but a destination in and of itself. This is evidenced by the sheer number of times the FIVE brand has been shown across international television outlets Netflix, BBC, Quibi and RTL. For famed shows such as Dubai Bling and Inside Dubai and over 860,000 engaged Instagram followers, 187m TikTok Views of the FIVE hashtag and 20m Youtube Videos. It is evident Kabir has created a ‘vibe’ that other brands around the world have not been able to accomplish.