PRESSR: FHS World announces first confirmed speakers for Middle East’s leading hospitality investment summit

Dubai, UAE:  The first 50 of a plethora of hospitality and tourism industry leaders have been confirmed as speakers at the Future Hospitality Summit – FHS World, taking place at Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai, 27-29 October.

Globally renowned experts and personalities across hospitality, tourism, media and education are speaking at the Middle East’s leading investment summit, held under the overarching theme for 2025 of Where Vision Leads, Investment Follows.

Details of the speakers can be found at https://www.futurehospitality.com/world/speakers, with the list constantly updated as more sign up. Confirmed speakers include:

• Abdullah Al Moosa, Founder & Chairman, A. A. Al Moosa Enterprises (ARENCO Group) – Winner of the 2025 FHS Lifetime Achievement Award

• Stephen Sackur, Former Presenter, BBC HARDTalk

• Thomas B. Meier, Chief Executive Officer, Jumeirah

• Nick Candy, Chief Executive Officer, Candy Capital
• Dr. Achim Schmitt, Dean, EHL Hospitality Business School
• Professor Marc Lepere, Lead in ESG & Sustainability, Executive Education Department of Banking & Finance, King’s Business School
• Amit Arora, Chief Operating Officer, Arada
• Stefano Saporetti, Director of Brand Diversification, Aston Martin
• Hans Meyer, Co-Founder & Managing Director, Zoku
• Daniel Thorniley, Economist & President, DT-Global Business Consulting
• Eleonora Srugo, Licensed Associate Real Estate Broker & Star of Netflix’s Selling the City

Jonathan Worsley, Chairman of The Bench, organiser of FHS World, said: “FHS World may be three months away, but the planning and organisation, which started as soon as last year’s event finished, is in full swing. Our first speakers are confirmed, and hundreds of attendees have already signed up for the region’s leading hospitality investment summit.

“FHS World gets bigger, bolder and better every year, and we are proud to announce our first 50 speakers and rapidly-evolving agenda at this early stage. We look forward to welcoming back some of our regular speaker participants alongside industry leaders who will be joining us for the first time, when the global hospitality and tourism investment fraternity gathers in Dubai in October.”

With an expected attendance of more than 1,600 delegates, FHS World 2025 will feature its usual highly-anticipated, action-packed agenda addressing key industry opportunities, challenges and trends across three stages, with additional workshop rooms and breakout areas. 

Centred around the event theme, Where Vision Leads, Investment Follows, the FHS World programme covers everything from investment to innovation, sustainability to staffing and technology to tourism trends, with keynote speeches, panel discussion, presentations and round table debates on the agenda. Follow FHS World for updates and speakers.

This year, FHS World will zoom in on global hospitality investment with a focus on projects, financing models and hotel performance.  In addition, the country pavilions are back again for 2025 with, amongst others, China, Italy, Maldives and the Philippines showcasing their hospitality and tourism investment offerings. 

Also back by popular demand is the Branded Residences Forum, which takes a deep dive into the rapidly growing branded residences sector, with input from a host of global experts in the field.

About The Bench

The Bench has built a legacy as a global curator of opportunity, designing transformative forums and summits that empower the hospitality and travel industries to connect, innovate, and thrive. With over two decades of expertise, The Bench creates platforms that go beyond transactions to inspire collaboration and drive meaningful change.

Each event brings together government leaders, tourism ministries, global travel associations, leading hospitality brands, hotel owners and investors, airlines, destination developers, and more. From flagship gatherings like FHS World (formerly AHIC) and FHS Saudi Arabia, to FHS Africa (formerly AHIF) and AviaDev, The Bench creates events where ideas spark, relationships deepen, and investments take flight.

The Bench thrives on fostering dynamic and forward-looking dialogues, uniting industry pioneers to address challenges, seize opportunities, and co-create the future. Each event is crafted to deliver more than just connections - it’s about transforming ideas into action and building a better tomorrow.

 Discover more at thebench.com

About FHS World

Dates:                           27-29 October 2025

Location:                       Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai, UAE

Sponsors:                                

• Jumeirah as Host Sponsor; China Search for Culture Power Committee (Country Pavilion), Maldives
• Fund Management Corporation (Country Pavilion), NEOM, Rua Al Madinah Holding and Taiba
• Investments at Strategic Partners; PwC as Knowledge Partner; Accor, Arada Hospitality, Barriere,
• Club Med, ExploreTECH, IHG Hotels & Resorts, Italia Hospitality (Country Pavilion), Marriott
• International, Modon Hospitality, Radisson Hotel Group, Red Sea Global, Rotana, The Ascott Limited,
• and Tourism Promotions Board Philippines (Country Pavilion) as Headline Sponsors; Action Hotels,
• Aleph Hospitality, Aristara, ARK People Solutions, Blastness, Bushtec Creations, BWH Hotels, CBRE,
• Colliers, Compass Project Consulting, Credibl ESG, EHL Hospitality Business School, Enterprise
• Greece, Forsite Creative, H World International, IHCL, JLL, JT+P, Knight Frank, Louvre Hotels
• Group, Minor Hotels, Quo, Rikas Hospitality Group, STR CoStar™️, The First Group Hospitality, Tui
• Hotels & Resorts, United Hospitality Management, United Network Studio (UNS), and Wyndham
• Hotels & Resorts as Sponsors; Cavendish Maxwell, Centara Hotels & Resorts, Rove Hotels, Shaza
• Hotels and Start Reverse as Exhibitors; Adyen, dailypoint, Flyr, Portal, RMS Cloud in the
• ExploreTECH Tech Pavilion.

Media contact:             

Anne Bleeker, Managing Director In2 Consulting

Email: anne@in2consulting.com

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