New Owners To Rebrand Destino As Five Hotels Ibiza
The old Destino Ibiza resort, located at Cap Martinet with privileged views of Formentera and Ibiza port, will be rebranded as Five Hotels Ibiza. Its new Dubai-based owner, Indian-born Kabir Mulchandani, recently confirmed on his Instagram page that the venue will convert to a Five Hotels concept. Regarding its future direction, Mr Mulchandani, ranked by Forbes Magazine as the 24th most powerful and influential tourism leader in the Middle East, stated, “Five Hotels has a very strong name and identity and a promise to its customers. It will not become a Five Pacha as that would not make sense.”
The old Destino venue was a little lost under the direction of its previous owners. Pacha tried to copy the successful Ushuaia model at the venue with daytime parties but fell foul of local residents who objected to noise and traffic pollution in the residential area. It never realised its full potential as a luxury Hotel, but now, in the hands of the same company that built the $1.17 Billion Palm Jumeirah Dubai hotel with 477 rooms and 221 residences, its future as a luxury Hotel looks assured.
Five Hotels also operates a hand-crafted music label in partnership with Warner Music Group and homes a state-of-the-art studio in the Palm Jumeirah Hotel. The group also owns the Woomoon Storytellers brand, a hippy-inspired music and art concept that was very popular in Ibiza for several years. It still operates at Cova Santa but as a shadow of its former self. Under Mr Mulchandani’s leadership, Destino is expected to retain its music ethos, but reimagined to cater to a more discerning audience. After the departure of Nick McCabe, Pacha was left without a strong leader. In Mr Mulchandani, they will now have a confident, visible and professional operator to improve the company’s brand awareness on social media and in public relations.
With rumours that the Matutes Group had shareholdings in the previous Pacha ownership and offloaded its shares to invest in the new Privilege redevelopment, the arrival of Five Hotels to Ibiza will pose serious competition to the indigenous brand, which owns the powerful multinational Palladium Hotel Group, operating 48 Hotels across Spain, Italy, Brazil, Mexico and Jamacia. The Matutes Group are also. 50% shareholders in Ushuaia Entertainment, which manages Hi Ibiza, Ushuaia and Privilege in partnership with Frenchman Yann Pissenem, the Emperor of Ibiza nightlife.
Five Hotel Ibiza 2025
The Blog understands that Five Hotels Ibiza will open for business in 2025 as Destino’s multi-million refurbishment starts next year. It’s an exciting time for the nightlife industry in Ibiza as the tiny Mediterranean island continues to set international trends as the premier destination for the party and clubbing sector. The arrival of Kabir Mulchandani into the shark-infested waters of Ibiza business life will undoubtedly make for exciting viewing as he is known as a sharp and influential businessman.
How he will be viewed and accepted in Ibiza will determine his success going forward. His handling of certain DJs at the club and the appointment of a new music director will require astute judgement. He has stated that Pacha needs to reconnect with the local community, an error the previous owners made with its treatment of staff and locals compared to the Urgell family era. That would be a promising start to his tenure.
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