Kempinski and Adagio – without and with a strategy

25.9.2026

Dear Insider,

Things are heating up again at Kempinski Hotels, but only internally, behind the scenes. All things are pointing to change after too many changes in recent months. Barbara Muckermann’s strategy does not seem to be working. The luxury hotel group has lost 19 hotels in two and a half years. On the one hand, the aim was to separate the unprofitable luxury hotels from the iconic properties, whilst at the same time transforming the company from an asset-light to an asset-heavy model. The group recruited a whole host of high-earning chief officers; 120 staff now manage 63 hotels and a meagre pipeline. To wind up the unprofitable hotels both operationally and formally, a new company (KISA II) was also quietly set up. But a KISA already exists. So why do there have to be two?

There are still a great many unanswered questions. Kempinski Hotels is less transparent than the respected luxury hotel group has ever been. The true value of Europe’s oldest luxury hotel group lies on the floor. It is now up to the supervisory board members and the owner family from Bahrain to take the final decision. They must now decide on the future of Kempinski, not just on a CEO.

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Laws and penalties. And Branded Residences under the magnifying glass.

11.9.2026

Dear Insider,

You can’t help but come across speeches and articles on the subject of Branded Residences these days. The trend, which first emerged in Miami, is now reaching its limits in Dubai, the epicentre of the boom. On the one hand because of the US-Iran conflict, and on the other because the Residence building is no longer adorned with the names of hotels, but with fashion brands and football clubs. Because customers are currently no longer keen to travel to the Middle East, sales managers are now flying out, for example to Amsterdam, to a huge shopping mall teeming with people, where holiday homes can be sold quickly (just like in the days of timesharing?). An era of "mass residences" is beginning.

Many impulse buyers pay little attention to the details of the property. And above all: They sign long-term contracts. But what happens if the hotel brand pulls out? Who will offer this service then? By how much will the brand value decrease for the owner, and by how much for the buyer/customer? In which phase of the cycle do which stakeholders actually make the big money?

Jeff Tisdall of Accor One Living, Henk Meyknecht of the private equity firm SAH in Dubai, and Hans Peter Betz, a consultant specialising in advising property owners in the Middle East, begin by highlighting just how complex everything has become. Which is why they themselves are taking a highly critical look at the changes and the future of residence operators and brands, right here and right now. Sarah Douag has recorded everything in detail, including the stumbling blocks. A massive research project for you, dear subscribers!