Mert Askin is President of Food & Beverage at Azadea Group, responsible for strategy and development. The F&B arm of the group currently has more than 100 outlets across eight countries in the Middle East and Africa.

Azadea Group is a premier lifestyle retail company that owns and operates more than 40 leading international franchise concepts in fashion and accessories, food and beverage, home furnishings, sporting goods, multimedia and beauty and cosmetics across the Middle East and Africa spread across 13 countries overseeing more than 550 stores.

Prior to joining Azadea in 2014, Mert gained extensive operational experience leading the casual all-day dining chain of the d.ream Group, one of the world’s fastest growing restaurant groups with more than 140 outlets, including Kitchenette, Gunaydin, Nusr-et and Zuma.

Earlier in his career, Mert was a management consultant with the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) based out of Munich, Germany, where he advised clients in various industries on business strategies globally, and with Ernst & Young Luxembourg in advisory practice.

Mert Askin holds a bachelor’s degree in Operations Management from the Koc University, Istanbul, where he graduated with the highest of honors. He also holds an MBA from UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School as a Richard H. Jenrette fellow. Mert is an elected Board Member of the Dubai Restaurant Group, and a member of the Corporate Governance Association of Turkey.