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Under African skies
While North Africa has been grabbing political and cultural column inches as the region seeks to redefine itself, an economic revolution is making headlines in sub-Sahara. Tom Vaughan investigates.
Succession plans at Rezidor
As CEO, Kurt Ritter came to define the Rezidor brand. So, what happens next? New CEO Wolfgang Neumann explains how he hopes to take the company forward, retaining the core principles that made Ritter’s tenure such a huge success.
Claus Sendlinger: the man behind Design Hotels
With two decades in the business, Claus Sendlinger of Design Hotels has long been lauded as a trend-spotter and industry luminary. But as the lifestyle market grows more saturated, how can premium design hotels continue to set themselves apart? He talks to Abi Millar about how the company’s task is changing and how its selection strategy has evolved.
Arne Sorenson: family values
As only the third CEO in the company’s history, and the first non-family member to hold the role, Marriott International’s Arne Sorenson has big shoes to fill and an exacting predecessor to impress. He talks to Phin Foster about leading the US’s largest publicly listed hotel group, growth strategies in new markets and building on Bill Marriott’s legacy.
Solid foundations
2012 has been a difficult year for the European hotel market, as liquidity for developers has faded away. Max C Luscher of KPMG, Hotel Management International’s new associate partner, looks at why successful financing is always underpinned by a successful hotel.
2012: a year of highs and lows for the hotel market
Economic trouble, civil unrest, the Olympic Games – it’s been another interesting year for Europe and the hotel market. Philip Kleinfeld takes in the highs and lows with Arthur de Haast, chairman of Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels, and Timothy Lloyd-Hughes, head of European hotel, leisure and gaming at Deutsche Bank.
Holidaying in a time of unrest
Ongoing political turmoil and recent violent events in the Middle East may be beyond a mere hotelier’s control, but how one prepares for and reacts to them is not. Owners and operators based in the region’s trouble spots discuss their efforts to reassure guests about safety.
Crowning achievement: the European Hospitality Awards
Now in its third year, the European Hospitality Awards brought together leading hoteliers from across the globe to London for a night that recognised and celebrated excellence throughout the sector during 2012.
Thermal dynamics: SpaFinder’s global trends
Bathing in the glory of its ten-year anniversary, the 2013 SpaFinder Wellness annual forecast of global trends makes it startlingly obvious just how much the market has evolved in a decade; how sophisticated spas, hotels and their consumers have become. Lie back and relax as SpaFinder president Susie Ellis waxes lyrical about the sector’s three definitive trends.
A group effort: working towards the hotel industry’s sustainability goals
The industry’s biggest players have been dedicated to environmental and social sustainability for decades, but 2012 saw many of them take this commitment to the next level. Elly Earls meets IHG’s David Jerome, Starwood’s Andrea Pinabell and Accor’s Sophie Flak to find out why collaboration – at every level – is the only way to ensure they continue to hit their increasingly ambitious sustainability goals.