Bellagio Is One of Four Hotel Brands under MGM Hakkasan Hospitality
MGM Resorts International and Hakkasan Group accounced on April 21 the formation of a joint venture to produce luxury non-gaming hotels worldwide. The new venture, called MGM Hakkasan Hospitality, will develop and manage hotels under four different brands. These resorts will carry the most successful and well-known brand names each company has to offer.
The two companies began a partnership in April 2013, when the Hakkasan restaurant and nightclub opened at the MGM Grand. The Hakkasan at the MGM Grand was a 5-story, 80,000 square foot restaurant and club which cost $100,000 to build, and offers $200,000 a night payouts to DJs like Calvin Harris, Tiesto, and Nervo. The club has proven to be a major success, so the two companies decided to combine their various resort projects and hotel developments currently ongoing on four continents.
Jim Murren Speaks of Global Branding
MGM Resorts CEO Jim Murren said the joint venture was the logical next step for the two companies. Murren said, “Growing that relationship to form MGM Hakkasan Hospitality provides us both with access to capital, as well as the opportunity to join their internationally renowned lifestyle brand with iconic brands such as Bellagio and MGM Grand.”
The four brands of hotels and resorts which MGM Hakkasan Group will produce are Bellagio, MGM Grand, Hakkasan, and Skylofts. When speaking of the joint venture, Jim Murren added, “We seek to create resort destinations and lifestyle experiences around the globe.”
Corporate Leadership of MGM Hakkasan Hospitality
Neil Moffitt, CEO of the Hakkasan Group, will be the head of the new enterprise. MGM Hopsitality Chief Operating Officer Michael Evans will fill the same position with the joint venture. MGM Hakkasan Hospitality will operate with a combined board and governance.
At present, MGM Resorts International has hotel and resort developments currently underway in North America, South America, Asia, and the Middle East. Hakkasan Group has projects underway in Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, along with the beach resort city of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, the Indian metropolis of Mumbai, and Doha, Qatar. These various projects will now be combined under the MGM Hakkasan Hospitality name.
Hakkasan Group Chairman’s Statement
Khadem Al Qubaisi, Hakkasan Group Chairman, released a statement when the business arrangement was announced. Al Qubaisi’s statement read, “This joint venture exemplifies one of our stated strategies of developing Hakkasan Group into a multifaceted global lifestyle company.
The Hakkasan Group Chairman went on to add that MGM Resorts International was the type of partner the company had wanted for some time. Al Qubaisi added, “While hotel and resort projects have been part of our business plan for some time, it was crucial for us to find the best possible partner that could bring a wealth of experience and skill to the development and operation of branded products, and we believe there is no better choice than MGM Resorts International.”
About Hakkasan
Hakkasan began as a Chinese restaurant in London, founded by Syra Khan and Alan Yau. The two also created the Wagamama Japanese restaurant chain, along with the newer Yauatcha brand restaurants. Alan Yau sold his portion of the company in 2008, but the chain of Hakkasan restaurants has only continued to grow in number.
Hakkasan now has restaurants in New York City, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Miami, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha, and Mumbai.
About MGM Resorts International
MGM Resorts International is the owner and operator of 17 different hotel-casinos in Nevada alone, and is the largest single employer in the State of Nevada (54,000 employees). The gaming company also has operations in Michigan and Mississippi, along with 50% ownership of casinos in Illinois and in Macau, China.
In Las Vegas alone, the company owns Bellagio, MGM Grand, The Mirage, Luxor, Mandalay Bay, Monte Carlo, New York-New York, Slots-a-Fun Casino, Excalibur, and Circus Circus.
MGM Resorts Announces Open-Air Venue for Rock in Rio
MGM Resorts International, today announced a partnership with Cirque du Soleil, billionaire Ron Burkle of the Fresh & Easy grocery story chain, and Roberto Medina of the Rock in Rio to build a 33-acre open air venue near Sahara Avenue for the 2015 Rock in Rio concert series. The complex will be called “The City of Rock”, and it will be a permanent concert site in the city.
When completed, the City of Rock venue will allow up to 80,000 audience members to watch shows on five different stages. MGM Resorts plans for it to be open by 2015, when up to 300,000 people are expected to visit the city for the world famous Rock in Rio concerts.
