About us

Addmind is a privately owned hospitality group with a distinctive and growing international portfolio of restaurants, bars and lounges, beach clubs, nightlife and hotels.

Mastering the art of experience

The story of Addmind began with the opening of CEO Tony Habre’s first bar in Beirut in 2001, and the company has grown exponentially ever since. Nearly twenty years later Addmind continues to thrive under the leadership of Tony. His passion and determination to push boundaries has ensured Addmind’s position as a pioneer within the Middle Eastern hospitality industry. With his direction, the company has expanded to over 22 brands to date with a portfolio of venues spanning MENA and growing internationally.

People at Addmind

Tony Habre

GROUP CEO

Over nearly twenty years, Mr. Tony Habre has shaped one of the most significant and respected portfolios of restaurants, bars, lounges, and clubs in the Middle East. His continued contribution to the industry can be seen through the lens of Addmind Hospitality’s sustained successes.

Starting with a pub in downtown Beirut in 2001, Tony saw the impact of real experiences on guests. More than just creating memories, these moments have the power to create positive change in ourselves, and in turn, the world. Mr. Habre’s vision has transformed the Middle Eastern nightlife and food and beverage scenes.

A leader in every sense of the term, Tony brings out the best in his people, utilizing a few key ingredients: to listen, trust, believe, respect, and most importantly, to allow.

Zeev Godik

GROUP EXECUTIVE CHAIRMAN

Zeev has over 40 years of international expertise in the restaurant industry. As Gaucho Group’s Founder and CEO and an award-winning restaurateur, Zeev is recognized as a leading operator who has consistently over decades delivered industry-beating margins, whilst protecting his brands and offering first-class guest experience, through a dedicated, hands-on approach. Zeev opened his first Gaucho in Amsterdam at the age of 22 revolutionizing the steak sector and has since created and grown multiple successful and distinctive restaurant brands including the creation of the Gaucho Academy, which rapidly became the benchmark for training standards in hospitality and became a highly regarded and sought-after credential within the industry. Zeev has wide-ranging international experience, having operated restaurants in the UK, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Dubai, Hong Kong and Argentina.

Claude Saba

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER

The proud and invaluable Chief Operating Officer of Addmind is and has always been a visionary in the F&B industry. Combining his academic background in Business Administration and inherent talent for consumer experiences in nightlife given over 20 years of experience; he adds 16 years of dedication to Addmind. Claude through his years of experience and professional input in the industry has managed to seamlessly and continuously link concept ideation to operational feasibility making him a key player in Addmind’s success.

Roland Kayaleh

MANAGING PARTNER

Roland started his career at the age of 17 working the nightshift as runner and bartender while studying Hospitality during the day. He continued his desire to progress in the industry by working for Addmind in 2004.

With passion, talent and natural know-how, he year by year led the operations and general management in venues such as White, Caprice, and Iris Beach in Lebanon. In 2013 Roland moved to Dubai with Addmind and successfully identified key locations across the UAE for upcoming concepts. His expertise in the region grew his in depth market knowledge and he now heads the Dubai office as Director of Operations for Addmind.

Elie Saba

MANAGING PARTNER

When it comes to nightlife, Elie Saba, Managing Partner at ADDMIND knows what the people want. Elie’s experience from his early days within the company led him to manage the entire day life and nightlife portfolio of ADDMIND including WHITE Dubai and Abu Dhabi, WHITE Beach at Atlantis The Palm, Pure WHITE in Dubai Harbor, La Mezcaleria in Downtown, JBR and Abu Dhabi, Babylon in DIFC, Ria at The Palm. Elie’s experience and understanding of all aspects of the operation coupled with his drive, dedication, and passion for the industry have led to the success of the group. Elie, who has been with ADDMIND for over 15 years, has placed a crucial role in the company’s growth and development. With his keen business sense and innovative ideas, he has been instrumental in driving the company’s growth and expansion.

Elie’s contribution to business development within the group coupled with his impressive network of contacts has helped to increase the company’s revenue and solidify ADDMIND’s position as one of the top players in the industry. As the managing Partner at ADDMIND, he continues to drive the company forward to even greater success in the future. His dedication to excellence and commitment to making a positive impact have earned him the respect and admiration of his peers and colleagues.

Wassim Zouein

MANAGING PARTNER

Wassim is defined by his initiative, passion, and leadership skills, all combined with his hands on experience in the hospitality industry. The success and impact of the brands he manages on Dubai’s nightlife and hospitality scene can be attributed his 15+ years of experience in the industry. Now Director of Lounges at Addmind, he notably enabled brands like Iris and INDIE DIFC to gain their awards only a year after opening. His charisma, empathy, and excellence in consumer service topped with creative and operational direction; led both outlets to receive “Best Bar”, “Best New Bar”, “Best Party Brunch”, and other acclamations in multiple publications such as Time Out Esquire Man, What’s On and more.

KATE HAUSEY

HEAD OF TALENT RESOURCES

Kate is the Head of Talent Resources at Addmind. She works with the operations teams on adoption and implementation of best practice human resources initiatives to support the strategic objectives of the business. Kate’s mission is to create a great working environment, to gain the trust of colleagues and to meet their needs and exceed their expectations at the company.

Kate leads the global recruitment drive to support the strategic growth of the Company as Addmind Group expands internationally. With her wealth of experience working in the hospitality industry for Accor Hotels, Emaar and Zuma, Kate knows how to bring to life a culture of inspiration, innovation and internal advancement.

 

MATHIAS PIRAS

OPERATIONS MANAGER - CLAP

Mathias brings a wealth of experience in Food & Beverage, Hospitality, and Customer Service in hotels, private members clubs and high-end restaurants across Europe, USA and UAE. His record of success in identifying problem areas, setting goals, guiding and mentoring staff, and formulating innovative processes to meet business targets makes him a great leader in Food & Beverage.

With a recent move to Addmind Group as Operations Manager for the award-winning Clap, Mathias promotes a culture of exceptional customer service, and exhibits dynamism in positioning the business for further success and international expansion.     

 

ANSHUL DOKANIA

HEAD OF FINANCE

Anshul is the Head of Finance at Addmind responsible for overseeing the finance function across the group. He is a Chartered Accountant and has more than 13 years of global experience in the entire facet of strategic finance, corporate governance, internal audit and stakeholder value protection. Anshul is committed to financial improvement and transparency by partnering with stakeholders to link operations and finance.

Starting his career in the banking sector, prior to joining Addmind in 2020, Anshul worked with Landmark Group, Dubai, across the GCC Restaurant division.

Mazen Tabet

Board Member

Mazen is an astute operator and investor in the hospitality and gaming industries within Australia.

Mazen partnered with the publicly listed Tattersalls Group in 2007. The public/private partnership was unique at the time and resulted with the development of the Lynbrook Hotel ( www.lynbrookhotel.com.au ), with a footprint of one acre the site is one of Victoria's largest hotel and gaming venues. This partnership success was followed by the architecturally focused Highlands Hotel ( www.highlandshotel.com.au ) developed in Melbourne's northern growth corridor.

As a member of 'Addmind' since its inception in 2006, Mazen has contributed a wealth of international experience and he himself gained valuable insight of the MENA region. With Mazen's combined knowledge and expertise across international markets, he has been able to continue to develop high-quality venues within Australia. This worldly experience has also been a key contributor towards Addmind's continued growth and expansion plans throughout the GCC, UK and Asia.

Sary Arab

CEO ADDMIND HOTELS & CHIEF DEVELOPMENT OFFICER – ADDMIND

Sary is CEO of Addmind Hotels and Chief Development Officer at Addmind Group with over 15 years of experience in the Lifestyle hospitality sector. Sary co-founded the Nikki Beach Hotels and Lift Hotels brands. Sary was a driving force in bringing the famous Nikki Beach Club brand to the next level of Hospitality. Over the years, he built exceptional relationships with company and Hotel brand investors.
Sary is a creative and dynamic leader with proven expertise in consistently delivering world class Hotels & Resorts in the Lifestyle segments with a focus on brand creation, cost efficient and out of the box concepts to ensure sustainable revenue growth.