Dubai’s trendy Akiba Dori serves up ambitious expansion plan

Samer Hamadeh told Arabian Business that the growth plans are being funded to the tune of “a couple of million dollars”.

The original Akiba Dori, which is styled like a backstreet alleyway of Tokyo, is situated in Dubai Design District (d3). Hamadeh said this would be followed this year by at least one more outlet in the emirate, along with one in Abu Dhabi and another in Jeddah – despite being in the middle of an economically crippling global pandemic.

Samer Hamadeh, founder of Aegis Hospitality

He said: “I don’t think it (expansion) was a brave decision at all. I don’t think it was a difficult decision. Yes it took time to convince my shareholders and board that we need to put more money behind the brand to get to the kind of objective that we’re getting at, which is even just to make it a small player in a global market, but I’ve never waited until things were right to get started in my life.”

The venue in Jeddah, in a strip mall operated by European-based Curtain Hospitality, was scheduled to open its doors in May 2020, but was delayed due to the Covid-19 crisis and is ready to launch in May this year

Hamadeh said they will be the anchor tenants and will sit alongside outlets including Slider Station, Baker & Spice and Kuwaiti-based Indian restaurant concept Kumar.

He added that the success in Jeddah, which is a joint venture partnership, could see further franchises rolled out into the Saudi capital Riyadh.

“People ask me why Jeddah before Riyadh? The reason for that is, I grew up in Riyadh and we used to vacation on the coast, so you’d either go to Jubail or Jeddah or you’d go to the places on the beach. So people from Riyadh end up in Jeddah for vacations. It’s the most developed city with beaches, let’s put it that way,” he said.

“Now the Formula One is coming, so Jeddah is going to be a very hot city this year. So if we’re successful in Jeddah, it’s much easier for us to get into Riyadh and to get into other cities, because that becomes our launch-pad, rather than going into Riyadh where it’s incredibly competitive, we’ll come in with a brand that people already know.”

The Akiba Dori in Abu Dhabi, meanwhile, which is set to open in July or August, will take pride of place in the Yas Bay development on Yas Island alongside a total of 25 other restaurants and bars, including UAE home-grown brands Lock Stock & Barrel and Asia Asia. “It’s a really nice mix and we’re right on the pier. I’ve got us a sunset view,” said Hamadeh.

Akiba Dori is set to expand across the UAE, into Saudi Arabia and potentially across Europe

In terms of the further Dubai opening, he remained tight-lipped, although he said it would be in “one of the older parts” of new Dubai.

On Monday, Dubai announced tougher restrictions for hotels, restaurants, shopping malls and entertainment venues as the city intensifies its fight against the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.

Restaurants and cafes are required to close by 1am while all pubs and bars are to close for the remainder of the month.

However, Hamadeh remained bullish about the market. He said: “Dubai has nowhere to go but up. We’ve gone through our dip in the past two years. I think, for me and my shareholders and my board, the kind of sentiment is that this is the time to get things done with the right people.”

And that includes huge potential for further international expansion. He said: “There’s nothing stopping Akiba Dori from being the next Wagamama. There’s literally nothing. I can say honestly that I have my sights set on certain parts of Europe. I’d love to be in Edinburgh, for example. It’s a very affluent demographic, people have money to spend, they want to go out and they’re interested in global cultures. There’s a very big Japanese cultural following in Scotland and the UK in general.

“What’s stopping us from opening in Soho in Central London? What’s stopping us form opening in Edinburgh? From opening in Milan, a very touristy city, which will become touristy again in 2022.”