Dijon a few weeks ago, soon Nice, Dubai, Los Angeles, Singapore... Mama Shelter is not exclusive in its development between the major French cities and the world's metropolises. Affordable prices, friendly catering, original decor, a festive atmosphere: the grafting of this concept launched by Serge Trigano seems to be taking off everywhere, with 17 hotels open today and many more to come.
Like others - perhaps more than others - this brand embodies the lifestyle shift that the hotel industry is undergoing today. A success story that the genesis of the project goes back 15 yearson 5 September 2008, the date of the opening of the first 'Mama' in the depths of the 20th century.e Paris arrondissement. An inauspicious location for many observers, Serge Trigano recalls having met 80 banks and been turned down 80 times before being able to complete his project in the document reviewing the history of the brand. And yet...
Serge Trigano has transformed a former car park on the rue de Bagnolet into a popular meeting place by thirty-something Parisians on the restaurant side and by tourists and business travellers on the accommodation side. Philippe Starck, on the design side, Michelin-starred chef Alain Senderens, on the menu, and Cyril Aouizerate, one of the leading figures in urban regeneration, are the guarantors of this success. Not to mention Serge Trigano's two sons, Jérémie and Benjamin, supporting their father.
" It is the brand that understood before anyone else that its first customer was the person who lived just a few minutes away, whereas for 50 years the hotel industry generated 85% of its sales from travellers who often came from far away.explained Sébastien Bazin, CEO of Accor, recently at a press briefing on the French group's investor day. The Trigano family showed us that with their concept, we could achieve 65% of sales not linked to the hotel roomWith grandparents, bankers and students all mingling at Sunday brunch. This is the turning point ".
Now that the concept has proved its worth, it needs to be expanded. Hence the idea of teaming up with the Accor group in 2014. " Our alliance with Accor has enabled this development "says Serge Trigano. " We didn't go looking for the Trigano family in the same way as Christoph Hoffmann at 25Hours.says Sébastien Bazin. These entrepreneurs said to themselves: "We've created a brand and opened five-six hotels. But we don't have the size, the balance sheet or the reservations centre to go into our thirties". Hence the need to work with a powerhouse like Accor. ".
With around fifteen Mama Shelter outlets today and a possible fifty in the longer term, the brand has been expanding at a measured pace since the partnership began. Without falling into the trap, typical of large structures, of diluting a strong identity through the multiplication of soulless clones. A challenge that is no doubt explained by the fact that the Trigano family is still involved in the venture, even though it has sold all its shares. "Regardless of the capital transfer, the founders are always there to preserve their brand, with an unwritten right of veto over new openings. "says Sébastien Bazin.
Preserving the original DNA
" It's a textbook case".says Cédric Gobilliard, director of Mama Shelter within Ennismore, the joint venture created by Accor and Sharan Pasricha to expand its footprint in the lifestyle hotel sector. To preserve the original DNA, Cédric Gobilliard continues to work hand in hand with the Trigano family. " I listen to themhe explains. She gave me her blessing and passed on its values to me. I'm here to protect those values and continue to develop Mama Shelter by maintaining the brand's identity and community spirit. We're even strengthening its lively, happy atmosphere. ".
To achieve this, Mama Shelter is counting in particular on its new resident designer, Benjamin El Doghaïli, chosen by the Trigano family to succeed Jalil Amor, who had worked with Philippe Starck on the first hotels: "Mama Shelter is a great place to stay. I design every hotel so that it retains its personality and its style as it ages, always reflecting the soul of the city and district where it is located ". In this context, after ParisMarseille, Lyon, Bordeaux, Toulouse and Lille, Rennes and DijonWith the opening of a 102-room hotel with a rooftop swimming pool in June 2024 in the central Riquier district, Nice is set to discover the special atmosphere of the 'Mamas'.
But the future is also being written under more distant skies with the brand's arrival in Dubai next year. With a hotel in keeping with the surrounding gigantism, featuring 197 rooms and 204 flats, four swimming pools and a range of dining options, as well as an open-air CinéMama. After the Middle East, Africa is also on the move with a project underway in Casablanca, as part of the Saray mixed-use complex. Mixing residential buildings, offices and shops, this development will add a 92-room hotel and 49 flats with two restaurants, a huge swimming pool and a 120 m² meeting space.
This business dimension will be equally present in Medellin and Zurich. While the future Mama Shelter Zurich, located in the Oerlikon district, will have 550 m² of meeting rooms in addition to 178 rooms, a rooftop terrace and three karaoke rooms, the Mama Shelter currently being prepared in Colombia's second city will have an even stronger business offering. Located in the El Poblado district, this 150-room hotel will include over 3,000 m² of coworking space, in addition to 500 m² of meeting rooms.
Still on the drawing board, the lifestyle brand is also set to appear in Singapore, with a 115-room hotel in the heart of Killiney Road, and in Liverpool, in the heart of an iconic building in the English metropolis, the George Henry Lee department stores'. At the same time, the brand will be adding a second address in Los Angeles. Located as the first in Downtown LA, the hotel will feature 149 rooms and two festive restaurants, including one on the rooftop terrace. " More and more medium-sized towns in France are coming to us, and the same is true in the United States, notes Cédric Gobilliard. Our local signature and local expertise are real and significant assets ". Among other arguments...
