Lebanon has always been a prime nightlife destination in the region, but it wasn’t until the early 2000’s that the industry really boomed and became an even more important part of the industry. At the heart of the action was MEC (Managing and Engineering Concepts), managed by its CEO Mark Chehade.
Back then, Mark was a soon-to-be civil engineer graduate from LAU. But his vision of “engineering” was different than most. Led by his passion for nightlife, he noticed a gap in the sector and sought to do something about it. The result was success. In 2000, his first endeavor was a pub in Monot called Rounders. Multiple success stories followed, sprouting in each of the Lebanese restaurant/bar hubs, from Gemmayze to Hamra.
MEC currently owns and manages 4 concepts: Escobar a Tex-Mex bar restaurant with seven branches, Kaffeine a cafe restaurant in Horch Tabet, Lock Stock and Stairway in Mar Mikhael.
In addition to creating original identities and bold concepts that ensure long life spans, what makes MEC such a strong player in a highly competitive field is that they can identify and envision the perfect locations for each new venue, in a way that will get the best traffic and exposure possible. As their name suggests, MEC create these concepts from scratch. With a handpicked team of specialists in design, construction, graphics, menu selection and engineering, entertainment, and marketing, MEC has created an independently-driven entity where each player has his own role to fill while operating within a larger teamwork-based unit where everyone assumes the role of managing partner, to bring out the best results possible.
For MEC, the road ahead is filled with new and not yet imagined concepts that will be sure to keep you entertained. Stay tuned.