Jumeirah Group ponders Manchester move

THE boss of Dubai-based hotel group Jumeirah has cited Manchester as a potential location for UK expansion.

Jumeirah operates the Burj al Arab hotel in Dubai which is designed to mimic a dhow’s sail and spinnaker.

In an interview with the Daily Telegraph chief executive Gerald Lawless said he would like to add to the three hotels the group runs in London and expand elsewhere in the UK on an “opportunistic basis”.

He said: “We would be very interested to see which other cities would sustain a Jumeirah hotel. Edinburgh would be very interesting for us and Manchester for sure.”

The group is also expanding in Asia. Mr Lawless told the newspaper: “We have really big hopes for the economic development in India. We have two hotels about to start construction, one in Mumbai and one in Goa, and we hope to get more.

“Look at the very business friendly government that is in power at the moment and what it is doing to try to improve the economy of India and improve the wealth of its citizens. Like China it has a rising middle class and these people will increasingly want to travel.”

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