Dubai, Business Bay and the Global Chapter: Real Estate to Automotive

For years, when people asked about my plans, I told them the same thing: I want to take Royal Rentals and everything around it international. Today that plan has an address. I've established relationships and investment in Dubai that span real estate and automotive, including an automotive repair and rental shop located in Business Bay.

Why Dubai

Dubai understands luxury the way I do. It's not just about having nice things. It's about experience, hospitality and service at a level where the client never has to ask twice. The city draws entrepreneurs, investors, celebrities and high-net-worth families from every corner of the world, and it has built infrastructure to welcome them: world-class hotels, a serious automotive culture, ambitious real estate and a business environment designed for global capital.

For someone who built a business on exotic cars and concierge-level service, Dubai isn't a stretch. It's the natural next stage.

Business Bay: the right neighborhood

Business Bay sits right next to Downtown Dubai along the Dubai Water Canal. It's a commercial and residential district full of towers, hotels and companies, and it's minutes from the places where luxury clients spend their time. For an automotive repair and rental operation, location is everything. You want to be close to the clients, close to the hotels and close to the action.

Being part of an operation in Business Bay gives me something I value as much as any return: a front-row seat to how the Dubai luxury market works day to day, what clients expect, how vehicles are serviced and what the standards are.

Repair and rental: two sides of the same asset

People sometimes ask why repair matters if the focus is luxury rentals. Because I've lived both sides. I spent about four years as a mechanic in the oil field before I ever ran a fleet. Maintenance is where rental businesses quietly win or lose. When you control service and repair, vehicles spend more time on the road and less time waiting in someone else's shop. Repair and rental together create a more resilient automotive business.

Real estate: from wheels to land

I've always called a well-run rental fleet “real estate on wheels.” In Dubai, the real estate is literal. My relationships there span property as well as automotive, and they connect directly to the work I'm doing in global acquisitions, new construction and land. Dubai's development pace gives investors and operators a living case study in how vision, capital and execution come together at scale.

Relationships first

Nothing in Dubai happens without trust. The relationships I've built there took time, conversation and showing up as the same person every time. That's the part social media doesn't show. Deals are the result. Relationships are the work.

It also means I'm selective. I'm interested in partners who value discretion, long-term thinking and doing things properly, whether they're investors, exotic car owners, hospitality groups or lifestyle managers serving clients who travel between the U.S. and the UAE.

Building across time zones

Operating between Arizona, the Carolinas and the UAE means rethinking how a business runs. Communication has to be crisp, standards have to be documented, and the people on the ground need the authority to make decisions. It's the same lesson I teach fleet operators, applied across continents: systems are what let you be present in more than one place at once.

What this means for clients and partners

For HNW clients and celebrities: a growing network that understands luxury travel and vehicles in Scottsdale, Charlotte and Dubai.
For exotic car owners: experience on both the rental and repair side of high-end vehicles.
For lifestyle managers and concierge firms: a relationship that can help coordinate premium automotive experiences across markets.
For real estate and land investors: a founder actively building in global markets and open to the right conversations.

From a landscaping company at twelve to Business Bay. The scale has changed. The standard hasn't.