A Nickelodeon resort would work “wonderfully for Dubai,” said Paramount’s Ty Granaroli
Paramount Global has said it is “aware of opportunities” on Dubai’s World Islands for a Nickelodeon resort, Hotelier Middle East is reporting. The manmade archipelago currently has just one property – Anantara Dubai World Islands Resort.
But Paramount Executive Vice President (EVP), Parks & Resorts Ty Granaroli said a Nickelodeon resort would match with the island perfectly, or another manmade island along the emirate. Currently, there are only two Nickelodeon properties - in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic and in Riviera Maya, Mexico - both of which leverage all the famous cartoon characters within the brand.
Speaking to Hotelier Middle East about Paramount’s future in hospitality in the Middle East and globally, Granaroli said: “Nickelodeon has potential in this region absolutely. What’s wonderful about it is, it’s a brand that works for children and adults. I could see that in Dubai, I could see it work. It would really tick a box here.
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| The Nickelodeon Resort in Punta Cana. Used for illustrative purposes only. |
“I feel those sorts of island destinations, they’re internalised, is where Nickelodeon resorts could work. You could stay at these destinations for a while. Everything you need is there. We’re aware of opportunities on Dubai’s World Islands, it would be a good destination for Nickelodeon.
“The brands we put in hotels have to have longevity. SpongeBob is going to keep going, and that’s great because that adds trust to our hotel product.
“We’re not in talks for a Nickelodeon resort yet but I think it would fit in Dubai really wonderfully. It would be a great complement to what’s already here.”
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| Dubai World Islands |
Nickelodeon resorts one of many ideas
Granaroli sat with Hotelier from the lounge of Paramount Hotel Midtown, Paramount’s second hotel-branded under Paramount Pictures. Following the success of Paramount Hotel Dubai, the EVP said he is confident Paramount Global will increase its stake in the region’s hospitality industry.
He said: “We want a lot of hotels and resorts in the Middle East, it’s hard to give a number. For sure we’ll work with DAMAC on Paramount; for Nickelodeon one or two would make sense. In the next five to 10 years you’ll see a lot more openings from us.”
Paramount Global expanding hospitality
Also overseeing all the theme parks for Paramount, Granaroli is familiar with entertainment across a number of verticals. According to him, hospitality is one of the best ways to grow and diversify the Paramount name.
He explained: “I would oversee a number of different formats for our brands. Hotels are just one format for us. It’s one of the fastest-growing formats as well though. Although hotels are expensive, they’re far less capitally-intensive than a water or theme park would be.
“You can open a hotel in two to three years, whereas a theme park could take five, six or seven years. Another benefit of hotels is immersion. You can get very close to our brand through a hotel. You can experience a brand in a very meaningful way at a hotel.
“Developers can get hotels up much more quickly [than theme parks] and the ROI is much shorter. I oversee all the brands in Paramount Global, so that’s Nickelodeon, MTV, Star Trek even. We’re opening a Nickelodeon hotel in Mexico this month and what we see – across them all – is that our brands work really well in the hospitality space.”
You can read Hotelier Middle East's interview with Ty Granaroli in full, in which Granaroli talks about wanting to open a indoor-outdoor 'wet and dry' theme park experience in the UAE on hoteliermiddleeast.com!
Originally published: March 18, 2022.
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