Sandhya Chhabria is a Strategy Lead and Partner at Meraki & Modus - a firm that specializes in crafting visionary concepts and strategies for luxury lifestyle destinations around the world, with a focus on hospitality, F&B, as well as the property development sectors. Being a firm believer in understanding lifestyle shifts and trends, Sandhya is able to identify emerging patterns and connections that bridge the gap between what people are looking for within the industry and how brands can deliver ultimately better experiences. Through research and analysis, she navigates the ever-evolving landscape of consumer preferences, empowering clients with insights that shape strategies and guest experiences. Using her deep appreciation for the power of storytelling, Sandhya’s work primarily lays the foundation for a brand to resonate authentically with their target audience. This could range anywhere between curating valuable guest experiences at hotels to developing prototypes for F&B clients. Over the last decade, she has worked closely with leading hospitality brands such as Hilton Hotels, Emaar Hospitality, One & Only Hotels, and Oberoi Hotels to name a few. Despite being a Dubai-born company, Meraki & Modus’ portfolio of projects are dotted across the world. Sandhya graduated from the Nolan School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University in the United States. The invaluable lessons acquired during her time there have played a lead role in shaping her professional endeavors. Sandhya is now keen to build and support the Cornell Hotel Society alumni network here in the U.A.E.Sandhya’s passion for hospitality began from a very young age. She first cultivated her deep love for the industry watching her family run well-known and successful Indian restaurants and a food service business in New York. After graduating from Cornell, she went on to lend to the expansion of the Café Spice brand into several different formats including quick-service. She was at the helm for designing the Dosateria retail quick service restaurant for Café Spice at Whole Foods Market within their TriBeCa store in NYC. She credits learning what true hospitality stands for to her parents - delivering memorable guest experiences that bring people joy in a business that is all about human emotion. In her life outside of work, Sandhya derives inspiration from reading, traveling and immersing herself in diverse experiences. Much of her interests aid Sandhya in tapping into the pulse of global trends and insights especially within the context of hotels and restaurants.