ESSAM BEHERY
CEO of Sky Hospitality
What can you tell us about your beginnings and the journey to where you are today?
I come from a corporate, multi-national business background. After 15 years, I transitioned to FMCG operations for a large industrial group. Now what we’re here to build is a very strong FMB and AgriFood sector within the group. We are also looking forward to importing high-end end products for the market.
What can you tell us about Sky Investments and Sky Hospitality?
Sky Hospitality is a new member of the Sky Investment Group, owner of Park St. business mall. Sky Hospitality is an idea that was created to establish a large F&B sector within the group.
Where do you see Sky Hospitality in three years’ time?
Through cooperation with SP Holding in Lebanon, which owns 18 different brands, Sky Hospitality has identified five restaurants with diverse cuisines for launch across Egypt.
What are the concepts you are launching soon?
We have Ni, which offers Italian and Japanese fusion cuisine, while Le Flandrin is from Paris, serving French cuisine and all-day dining meals, patisserie, bakery products, chocolate and macarons. Mounai is Mediterranean cuisine, focusing on seafood in a Lebanese style. Cocteau, meanwhile, is a lounge that serves all-day meals and also has a nice bar.
What is your long-term strategic vision for the company?
The strategic vision is to roll out approximately 20 different concepts in the next three years, and support this with a huge operational central kitchen.
How do you foresee the expansion plan?
We are moving to the east side of Cairo for the moment, with three openings in the coming months for Ni, Mounai and Le Flandrin. We are also looking at the north coast in summer and other possibilities.
PIERRE ZIADEH
CEO of SP Holding – Lebanon
Tell us about your beginnings and your journey to becoming the founder of SP Holding
Living in France,I always dream of creating an F&B business. It’s a career with many opportunities for development.
What inspired you to explore the Egyptian market?
Having the chance to meet Egyptian people and see how they always look for the best restaurants, best food and ambience. Egypt is also regarded as one of the most booming economies in the world.
What was the inspiration behind bringing Le Flandrin to the ME?
When I lived in Paris, I used to be fascinated by the concept where you can have everything in one place, yet with a high standard. That means serving freshly baked bread
and desserts, pastries, a widely varied menu for breakfast, appetizers, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner, all in a beautiful ambience.
What is the recipe for success in the F&B sector?
The core of the business is quality of food and service; how to sustain the same consistency is the essential factor in defining long-term success in this business.
What potential do local concepts and cuisines hold for development when compared to the launch of international franchises?
I think local concepts and cuisines hold as much potential for development as the launch of international franchises. As Egyptian cuisine makes heavy use of vegetables and fruits it shares similarities with the food of the eastern Mediterranean region. In fact, one of the concepts that I am planning to introduce is to develop Egyptian cuisine with a modern twist.
About author
Rita Ghantous
Rita Ghantous is a hospitality aficionado and a passionate writer with over 9 years’ experience in journalism and 5 years experience in the hospitality sector. Her passion for the performance arts and writing, started early. At 10 years old she was praised for her solo performance of the Beatles song “All My Love” accompanied by a guitarist, and was approached by a French talent scout during her school play. However, her love for writing was stronger. Fresh out of school, she became a freelance journalist for Noun Magazine and was awarded the Silver Award Cup for Outstanding Poetry, by The International Library of Poetry (Washington DC). She studied Business Management and earned a Masters degree from Saint Joseph University (USJ), her thesis was published in the Proche-Orient, Études en Management book. She then pursued a career in the hospitality industry but didn’t give up writing, that is why she launched the Four Points by Sheraton Le Verdun Newsletter. Her love for the industry and journalism led her to Hospitality Services - the organizers of the HORECA trade show in Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Jordan, as well as Salon Du Chocolat, Beirut Cooking Festival, Whisky Live and other regional shows. She is currently the Publications Executive of Hospitality News Middle East, Taste & Flavors and Lebanon Traveler. It is with ultimate devotion for her magazines that she demonstrates her hospitality savoir-faire.
