Jumeirah Launches New Hotel Brand; Matt Balcik Appointed VP Operations, Brand Development

Jumeirah has revealed plans to launch a new hotel brand.

To lead the new brand, which is called Venu, Jumeirah has appointed Matt Balcik as Vice President Operations, Brand Development. Matt is charged with leading preparations for the roll-out of Venu internationally.

A Turkish/American national, Matt Balcik has 18 years’ experience in the hospitality industry, having worked in Turkey, Washington DC, Sydney, Aruba, US Virgin Islands, New Orleans and Newport Beach, California.

His most recent position was as General Manager of the W Hotel in Istanbul. Prior to that, he held a number of senior roles working for well-known hotel brands such as Marriott and Starwood Hotels & Resorts, including General Manager of the Westin Virgin Islands and General Manager of the Westin Aruba.

He also has extensive brand development experience having spent 3 years as the Global Brand Advocate and Corporate Director of Operations for Renaissance Hotels.

Nicholas Clayton, CEO Group Operations at Jumeirah Group, said, “We are delighted to welcome Matt Balcik to lead the introduction of Venu to the market. His multi-brand background, together with strong operations experience, makes him the ideal candidate to spearhead the introduction and roll-out of our new contemporary lifestyle brand to the market. Under Matt’s leadership, we want travellers to be inspired by the energy of the Venu brand - to feel that they are encountering something completely new, where technology is seamlessly integrated into the hotel experience, where the world comes together – a happening place full of energy and a cosmopolitan crowd.”

Discussions are under way with a number of developers in the Middle East, Asia and Europe for the Venu brand. Appropriately, given the provenance of the brand, one of the first Venu hotels will be located in Dubai. The full details of the planned projects are expected to be announced later in the year.

Nicholas Clayton, 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, reflecting the city’s energy, dynamism and cosmopolitan nature. At the same time, coming to a Venu hotel will be an intuitive experience, built around and anticipating the needs of the modern, savvy traveller.”