46 December 2019 www.bahrainthismonth.com interview Wyndham known. So, we spend time in conferences, meeting people, talking to the press and giving them a good understanding of who Wyndham is and what we stand for. Also meeting owners, one of the first things I said was that I needed to meet most of our partners, owners and GMs in the region. And you know what? Today, 18 months later, I can tell you that I’ve accomplished about 60 per cent of that. But there’s more to do. The region is so big, you only can do so many things in a day or a week or a month. There are several Wyndham properties in Bahrain, any further developments planned in the Kingdom and the wider region? We’ve got five properties [one Wyndham Garden, a Wyndham Grand and three Ramada by Wyndham hotels]. We are one of the biggest hotel companies in Bahrain. We have great teams, we are working with very good owners. Bahrain has been good to Wyndham, very good in terms of revenues, welcoming us, giving us opportunities to grow, welcoming our guests, welcoming our brand. And, of course, we want to do more. That’s what we’re here for today. Saudi is a whole new ballgame isn’t it? I mean the announcements from the Crown Prince and the changes he’s making, I think it caught everybody by surprise. More chains have established a presence in Saudi in the last year than in decades. I think Saudi is going to be the biggest surprise of all. Wyndham Garden Manama is (or was, on opening) the biggest hotel in this brand worldwide – what drove the decision for such a significant investment in Bahrain’s relatively small market? The owners, Mannai Properties; they saw in Wyndham a good partner to do business with. I think the European and US business in Bahrain is very important, especially with the base here. If you look at the numbers, the occupancies, it has proven to be a very successful move. So, for us, I know that Bahrain might look like a small market, but look at the numbers. The final question and being cheeky, your quirky glasses are a trademark across the industry. What’s the story? It’s a true story that only a few people know. So, I’m 25 years old. I’m going to university in the UK. I wake up one day and half my hair is on the pillow. I started losing my hair and I panicked. It was 1986 and bald people were not trendy back then. So, I went to the doctor and told him my story. I told him how horrible I felt about losing my hair. I was thinking, what about girls? I’m going to be bald, what am I going to do with my life? So, he said: “I’ve got the answer.” I’m thinking, fantastic; he’s going give me a pill. My hair is going to grow back. He said: “Listen, you’re losing your hair. It’s in your genes. There’s no cure. Try to live with it, but listen to me. Go buy real bright, colourful [glasses] frames.” And I did. I’ve now got 20 frames from purple to red, from red to pink, and I’ve never looked back since then. It’s unbelievable. That deflection of focus. Everybody says: “I love your glasses”. Nobody says: “Oh my God, you haven’t got any hair”. How many properties are in your portfolio? Well, in my portfolio in Europe, the Middle East, Eurasia and Africa, I’ve got about 470 properties. Overall the group has about 9,200. So, we are the world’s biggest franchisor of hotels. I think I’ve got in my region about 55 per cent of the world’s population, including India with 1.2 billion people, so, it’s a very diverse portfolio. You’ve been in your current role around 18 months. What did you set out to achieve in this initial period? And, have you managed it? The challenge with Wyndham is that we have 20 brands and a lot of people know our individual brands such as Ramada, Days Inn and Super 8, but Wyndham is a relatively new company in EMEA. So, one of the things I said to my team was that we have to make Scan the code to read more from Dimitris. Dimitris Manikis, President and Managing Director (EMEA) for Wyndham Hotels & Resorts chats to Bill Grieve about his role, future plans and… funky specs. AN EYE ON THE FUTURE
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