EXCLUSIVELY IN
THE MALDIVES
We unite discerning investors, global hospitality brands,
and extraordinary Maldivian sites.
Together, we create resorts that feel inevitable rooted in place,
shaped by culture, and designed to endure.
From the quiet search for a site that few will ever see, to the moment a guest arrives and feels as though it has always been there, our work is a journey of precision, discretion, and deep cultural respect.
We guide each stage from acquisition to opening with a single measure of success: that every decision made today still feels right in decades to come.
OUR DISTINCTION
In the Maldives, opportunity alone is never enough.
We work in moments and places few ever see securing sites before they reach the market, shaping them with the right investors, and aligning them with the world’s most respected hospitality brands.
We stay long after the ribbon is cut, guarding the vision we helped create.
And we operate with quiet influence, knowing that the most valuable work is rarely visible, yet always felt.
OUR PHILOSOPHY
Every project leaves a footprint.
Ours is light, deliberate, and lasting
enhancing rather than imposing.
True Maldivian luxury is not excess, but belonging. It is the ability of a resort to echo its environment, honor its heritage, and remain relevant for generations.
OUR PRINCIPLES
Exclusivity
Our work exists only
in the Maldives. We
know its islands,
waters, and people
and move within a
network built on trust.
Integration
From capital structure
to the curve of a roofline, each decision considers the resort’s full life.
Discretion
The finest
opportunities never
reach the open
market. Ours are
secured quietly,
through relationships
and respect.
OUR APPROACH
Opportunity
Secure rare sites, often off-market or through selectivegovernment tenders
Structure
Shape the investment and corporate framework for strength and agility
Create
Define the brand, lead design, and oversee development to exacting standards
Steward
Remain long after opening as the owner’s strategic advisor and brand guardian
OUR SERVICES
Investment Origination & Capital Strategy
We connect investors, prime Maldivian sites, and leading hospitality brands to create distinctive resort opportunities. This begins with identifying the right location, often through off-market channels or selective government tenders, and extends to detailed feasibility studies. We design the investment structure, create bespoke investment structures, and develop capital strategies that secure both funding and long-term performance. Our approach ensures every project is commercially sound from the start.
Regulatory Navigation
Brand Strategy & Operator Alignment
A resort’s success begins with its identity. We define market position, secure the right global hotel operator, and negotiate
agreements that preserve value creating a brand presence that resonates with discerning travellers and reflects the spirit of its setting.
Design Direction & Planning
We lead architectural and interior design teams to craft properties that are operationally efficient and visually compelling. Every element from spatial flow to material choice is shaped by the Maldivian environment, ensuring beauty, function, and a deep sense of place.
Development
Asset Management
ROOTED IN
EXPERIENCE
With a team present in both the Maldives and
Germany, we blend deep local insight with global development expertise.
We work quietly but effectively, drawing on trusted relationships with government, investors, operators, and designers to move each project forward with focus and discretion.
This presence in two worlds allows us to unite international capital and talent with the authenticity and rhythm of Maldivian island life creating resorts that are as culturally grounded as they are globally relevant
OUR TEAM
Ezgi christel ahmed
Founding Partner
Guides each project from a rare Maldivian site to a living destination. Her career at Daimler, Airbus, and Mercedes-Benz across Europe and Asia informs a style defined by precision, cultural empathy, and long-term vision.
Ezgi
She brings a rare blend of global corporate experience and local insight to resort development in the Maldives. Before founding Stärken Consulting, she held roles at Daimler, Airbus, and Mercedes-Benz across Europe and Asia, where she worked on complex, cross-cultural projects that demanded both precision and adaptability. This foundation gave her a deep understanding of how to manage large-scale developments while staying attuned to cultural context and long-term value.
With an entrepreneurial spirit and a deep connection to the Maldives, she has guided projects through every stage — from acquisition and regulatory navigation to brand alignment and design direction ensuring that each resort is commercially sound, architecturally distinctive, and culturally grounded.
Her work is anchored in a belief that true luxury is not excess, but belonging. Every project she leads is shaped to echo its environment, honor heritage, and remain relevant for generations.
Nicole Schepanek
Partner
Leads Stärken’s strategic growth with a considered balance of discipline and vision shaping partnerships that reflect the firm’s long-term commitment to meaningful investment.
Nicole
Nicole is the Managing Partner of Aureus Capital and Kalveram Capital, independent yet connected firms spanning private equity, venture capital, real estate, and hospitality investment.
Through Aureus Capital Partners, she leads private-equity and M&A initiatives, with a focus on B2B services and corporate finance, particularly fintech, insurtech, financial-services–relevant technology, climate technology, and PE-backed innovation. At Kalveram Capital, she oversees venture-capital and real-estate investments with an emphasis on fintech, insurtech, climate tech, and sportstech. Within Stärken Consulting, she guides development and hospitality ventures with a focus on the Maldives.
With more than three decades in international finance, Nicole has structured cross-border transactions, supported companies through transformation, and advised leadership teams across industries and continents. Her global network of investors and institutions reflects a career defined by trust, precision, and depth.
Her approach unites financial discipline with human insight aligning capital, design, and long-term value in projects that transcend commerce to create lasting significance.
Ibrahim Ahmed
partner
Bridges community, government, and investors with insight born from years in Southeast Asia and the Middle East. Specialist in investment, development, and regulatory navigation.
Ibrahim
He bridges communities, investors, and local stakeholders with insight born of deep Maldivian knowledge and international experience across the Middle East and Asia. His career began in advisory roles supporting regional growth strategies before moving into independent consultancy within the Maldivian tourism sector. He also co-founded a Hong Kong–based travel company, gaining first-hand experience in building a brand dedicated to luxury island destinations.
At Stärken Consulting, he leads the navigation of stakeholder relations, lease acquisitions, and regulatory approvals, ensuring projects move seamlessly from concept to completion. He also oversees the formation and structuring of local entities and contributes to the financial feasibility process, aligning development models with Maldivian realities.
By connecting international investors with the structures and conditions required locally, he provides a steady hand across the full lifecycle of resort development.
Ali Nihad
Partner
Brings two decades of commercial leadership in luxury hospitality across the Maldives and Asia, including the pre-opening of St. Regis Vommuli Maldives. Former executive with The Ritz-Carlton, St. Regis, Anantara, and IHG. Advisor in brand alignment and operator strategy
Ali
He brings over two decades of commercial leadership experience in luxury hospitality across the Maldives and Asia. His career spans senior commercial roles with Marriott International Anantara and IHG across flagship brands such as The Ritz-Carlton and St. Regis, Intercontinental.
His experience working with the world’s leading hospitality groups has equipped him with the knowledge and insight to position properties at the very pinnacle of the global luxury market.
At Stärken Consulting, he acts as a brand advisor and operator strategist, guiding owners in selecting the right operator, negotiating management agreements, and ensuring brand standards are not only met but elevated. He also contributes expertise at the planning and feasibility stage, advising on revenue modelling, rate strategy, and sales assumptions to ensure projections are both ambitious and achievable. Beyond opening, he leads on commercial strategy and post-opening performance optimisation, helping resorts sustain profitability and long-term guest resonance.