Dubai-based hotel operator Jumeirah Group has announced plans to relaunch its contemporary lifestyle brand, Venu (stylized as VENU), a project that was stalled during the economic downturn in 2010, Gulf Business reports.
The company said that it is in talks with developer Meraas to operate its first Venu hotel on Bluewaters Island development, a project that is located off the coast of Jumeirah Beach Residence in Dubai.
Jumeirah Group, a member of the government-owned investment conglomerate Dubai Holding, said that it is in talks with a number of developers in the Middle East, Asia and Europe for the brand. It will be operated as an independent brand under the group, a statement said.
Nicholas Clayton, CEO group operations at Jumeirah Group, said: “This is a genuinely exciting innovation for Jumeirah Group. The time is right for us to launch a new contemporary lifestyle brand. Its provenance and energy comes from Dubai – and the first few VENU hotels will open here – but it is ultimately a powerful way of taking the core essence of the Dubai out into the international market.”
The Venu brand, initially announced in 2010, was scrapped a year later due to the economic downturn in 2009 and 2010.
Jumeirah Group currently manages 22 hotels in over 10 countries with plans to add 10 new hotels to its Dubai portfolio in the next few years.