New boss hired to run Jumeirah restaurants

Dubai-based Jumeirah Group has appointed a new senior vice president to run its restaurants business following the resignation of Phil Broad in November.

Gert F Kopera, an Austrian national, brings more than 30 years of hospitality experience, the past 15 years of which has been spent with Rosewood Hotels & Resorts, where he was responsible for managing F&B operations, strategy and conceptual design.

In his new role with Jumeirah, he will be responsible for concept development, operations and innovation, the company said in a statement.

Jumeirah currently manages 115 restaurants and bars in Dubai, 12 in Abu Dhabi, and 36 more within its hotels, resorts and residences in London, Frankfurt, Mallorca, Istanbul, Rome, Shanghai and the Maldives.

Kopera will also oversee Jumeirah Restaurants, the branded restaurant division of Jumeirah Group, which is tasked with setting up and licensing innovative and successful casual dining concepts to its international network of partners.

The appointment follows the departure of Jumeirah Restaurants managing director Phil Broad who jumped ship on November 15 to take up the role of vice president of food and beverage for the Middle East, Asia and Africa at InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG).

Jumeirah Group president and CEO, Gerald Lawless, said: “At Jumeirah we take great pride in the fact that we are recognised for our culinary excellence and talent, as well as the vast choice of dining options that we offer our guests.

“We also acknowledge that when it comes to food and beverage offerings, we are in a highly competitive market space and need to work hard to continue to outshine the rapidly increasing competition.

"Gert’s appointment will help us in establishing Jumeirah as a world-class operator of food and beverage concepts, delivering consistently high levels of service and profitability,” he added.