Morocco: Nobu Hospitality, the luxury brand led by Nobu Matsuhisa, Robert De Niro and Meir Teper has announced its first expansion into Africa.
Nobu Hotel and Restaurant Marrakech, to open in one of Morocco’s biggest cities, will open in the third quarter of 2021.
Located in the historic Hivernage district of the city, Nobu Marrakech hopes to capture Moroccan heritage while keeping contemporary luxury at the forefront. The hotel will be located nearby the Djemaa el-Fna, one of the oldest market quarters and a popular tourist attraction to this day.
Nobu Hospitality plans to partner with Hivernage Collection and MC Hotels to transform the existing Pearl Hotel Marrakech into the new property. MC is notable as it worked with the company previously on properties in Ibiza and Marbella.
Ahmed Bennani, President at Hivernage Collection, said: “The partnership with Nobu Hospitality in the launch of the Nobu Hotel and Restaurant Marrakech will enable our existing Pearl Hotel to be taken to the next level. It is further significant as the launch in Marrakech will be the first Nobu Hotel in Africa.”
The company is also entering the market as Morocco hopes to reignite tourist interest in the region. King Mohammed VI’s Tourism Development Strategy Vision 2020 has brought significant investment into the market, including Nobu.
Trevor Horwell, CEO of Nobu Hospitality said: “An increasing number of hotel owners today want to maintain the integrity of their properties, whilst having an appetite to work with us to enable complete differentiation, revenue advantage, and leveraging our food and beverage prowess. The global health and economic crisis have underscored this, and with Nobu’s strong appeal to the local market as well as the international traveler, we are pleased to provide such advantage.”
