The move was planned for the beginning of this year, but it was finally on 22 September that Chalon de Thé opened in its new location in the Gare district, at No. 5 Rue Glesener.
"We have 140m2 of space and now we offer salads and sandwiches for lunch in addition to drinks and pastries,” explains Mehdi Mimeche, main manager of Chalon de Thé.
For Dubai, the business plans a bigger space: "It is a 500m2 commercial villa in which around thirty cats will live [with access to indoor and outdoor spaces]. It is located five minutes from the Burj al-Arab," says the French entrepreneur.
Dubai, a market with great potential
Mimeche discovered the UAE megalopolis in December 2020 during a private trip. He made a stop at the two existing cat bars at the time and noticed that “these two bars were very small and the welfare aspect of the cats was not clear to me.”
Mimeche also points out that Dubai's potential is high as 90% of the population is expatriate and "many people feel an emotional lack of cats".
My goal is to make [our location in] Dubai the biggest cat bar in the world.
While the new establishment isn’t ready yet, the entrepreneur does not hide his enthusiasm: "My goal is to make [our location in] Dubai the biggest cat bar in the world". A dozen employees are expected to work there.
The man who is also a veterinary assistant and cat behaviourist by training intends to divide his time between Dubai and the Metz-Luxembourg area. Supported by his associates, the entrepreneur is also working on the new location on rue Glesener, as the basement should soon house an area with a particularly pronounced "cosy" accent. In the meantime, the felines continue their wanderings from cat trees to guest tables to the background of relaxing music.
This story was first published in French on . It has been translated and edited for Delano.