Project leader with over 29 years experience in the international markets, worked in the Middle East, in the UK and Spain, directing projects in Africa, Europe and Asia.

Christian Merieau, Founding Partner, MMAC Design Associates. With 30 years of experience in interior design, Mr. Merieau has honed his skills from the foundations of interior craftsmanship rising to the ranks of senior management. After an early education in hotel adminstration, he obtained a degree in Interior Design in 1989 and later qualified as Interior Architect in Geneva, Switzerland. Christian Merieau relocated in Dubai 2005 as Managing Director for well know international design firm. After nearly 20 years with this firm designing projects for international hotel operators such as Hyatt, IHG, Millennium, Rezidor, Rosewood, Marriott, Starwood and Accor, he launched MMAC Design Associates, an award winning boutique Dubai based interior design consultancy agency specialized in mid-scale & luxury hospitality design. Mr. Merieau was listed on several occasion as one of the most influential designer in the Middle East by Commercial Interior Design magazine. He has also helped drive the growth of APID, the Association of Professional Interior Designers since 2009 and currently holds the role of Executive Board member. Mr. Merieau, born in Vevey Switzerland and residing in Dubai, is married with two young daughters.

  Asmaa Said is the Associate Director at the award winning boutique design firm, Stickman Tribe. Asmaa runs the Dubai multi-disciplinary office, working on signature projects globally in over 10 countries and 23 cities. At Stickman, she had the pleasure of working with some of the world’s most reputable operators and developers to bring their visions to life, such Marriott, Shangri-La, Accor, Starwood, FRHI and Hyatt to name a few. Leading a team of 15 designers and architects in Dubai, over the past 12 months alone, she has had the pleasure of working and delivering high profile projects such as Waldorf Astoria Maldives, Mercedes me Chengdu, Shangri-La Oman renovation, Hyatt Place Xián, The Ritz-Carlton F&B and Conrad Hilton Kuala Lumpur F&B. Some of her proudest achievements and milestones within Stickman such as Hotel Jen Beijing, Nurai Island, Little Miss India and Fairmont Fujairah have been featured in International magazines and platforms such as Wallpaper, Architectural Digest, Commercial Interior Design, The Australian, Dezeen and many others. The same projects have also gone to win and be shortlisted for International Awards such as World Interior News held in the UK, AHEAD MEA and Global, Hotel Property Awards to name a few. The tribe is currently working on a multitude of exciting projects including the Viceroy in Seychelles, Swissotel in Doha and a unique standalone brewery, Pirate Life, scheduled to open in 2020 in Perth, Australia. 

Diane is an award-winning designer, co-founder of a leading international architectural firm in Dubai and a key influencer in the Middle East region. Her love and appreciation of art extends to finding opportunities that invite appreciation for art of all forms whether it is art on plate (cuisine), art in landscape or three-dimensional forms.  She studied Art, Design and Architecture in South Africa and is based in the Middle East.  As a LEED accredited professional and a WELL Building AP she finds extraordinary solutions to wicked design issues.  Diane is passionate about the quality and design of everything we see and touch and believes that the smallest details contribute to the experience. She is an advocate for creating environments that inspire and uplift.

Victor Schoone Msc Business Administration Erasmus University Rotterdam (Rotterdam School of Management) and CEMS Master ESADE Business School. Born in Rotterdam, Netherlands (1972), is the Country Manager for the Middle East region and surrounding countries since 2006 when he established the Roca Sanitario, S.A. Representation Office in Dubai, UAE.

Employed by Roca since 1998, his mission has been in the Middle East region to work towards achieving a leadership position for the Roca brand and pursue the recognition of the market of the key values defined by the Company: Sustainability, Innovation, Design, and Wellbeing.