Kerzner CEO Explains How to Scale New Brands While Keeping One&Only and Atlantis Exclusive
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Leaders of Travel: Skift C-Suite Series
What are the top trends impacting hotels, airlines, and online bookings? We speak to the executives shaping the future of travel.Atlantis The Royal (a Dubai hotel that opened in 2023 with a private Beyoncé concert) cost well over $1 billion to build. Atlantis The Palm, also in Dubai, cost $1.5 billion when it opened in 2008. Operator Kerzner now says it aspires to build as many as 15 such Atlantis mega-resorts worldwide.
The owner of One&Only Resorts is playing a delicate balancing act. Kerzner International wants to nearly double the ultra-luxury brand's count while maintaining the exclusivity that commands premium rates. Meanwhile, it's accelerating the development of newer concepts like wellness-focused Siro.
Kerzner currently operates 14 One&Only resorts. It's opening another in Montana this year — its first Alpine resort — and has 10 others in the pipeline.
"We've grown exponentially lately, and we have to keep an eye on our strategic philosophy," said CEO Philippe Zuber.
The Dubai-based company will cap its One&Only portfolio at about 35 properties, prioritizing exclusivity and maintaining high service standards over geographic ubiquity.
"To be true to our DNA and to do what makes our brand so special, you need to be consistent," Zuber said. "If you go to too many, you will be compromised, and potentially, one will look like the others."
Across its brands, Kerzner now manages 21 hotels, with 19 more properties in development. While it takes a me
