Dear Insiders,
Will Expo Real next week be a crisis trade fair? For the asset class Hotel, the sun should certainly shine brighter than for offices, shopping centres or the residential sector. "Hotels are unfairly criticised," says a real estate appraisal expert at a time when devaluations are again rearing their heads. But Birger Ehrenberg warns - everyone - not to panic. For eight years, until June 2022, he was Chairman of the Board of the German Association of Real Estate Investment Experts (BiiS). He compares the current situation on hotel real estate market to the game Mikado: In this market, it’s very much a case of whoever moves first loses.
The numbers expert identifies opportunities and risks for hotel investors and operators, knows the connections between concept and personnel costs, and is aware of the various burdens. Still, he says: There is no solid evidence for massive price and value corrections. Beatrix Boutonnet interviewed him intensively and Ehrenberg concludes with four pieces of advice for those active in the hotel sector.
Claudia Sunderkamp and Philipp Linder from Hotour Hotel Consulting also advise increased sensitivity and case-by-case consideration in the hotel industry, and call on investors, operators and asset managers - of whom there are more and more on both sides - for more transparency and communication. And they illustrate with the use of two charts with two different types of hotels that there are several ways to a positive result. Only one thing must never change: a reasonable rent. Susanne Stauss conducted the interview with the two managing directors.
I also found Peter Krueger, CEO of TUI Hotels, an interesting person to talk to this week. He is an investment banker and M&A expert and has pulled TUI out of the corona-induced misery. He, too, will be at Expo Real and will participate at the Hotel Conference, in which all the panels will revolve around sustainability. What is the strategy behind this hotel company, which today has 420 hotels and will soon have 600? The power vehicles behind this are joint ventures, investment partnerships including the company's first own fund, and flexible distribution, even tailored to individual contracts.
It's also very dynamic this autumn: Europe's hotels report super occupancy figures by global standards, even overtaking the U.S.; at the same time, travellers are starting to save, say two market reports. In the Netherlands, the hotel market is moving only cautiously, but Amsterdam is pulling away - despite all the city's plans to curb tourism.
The EU has thrown a spanner in the works for Booking.com: The OTA giant has been prohibited from acquiring ETraveli, a mega-player in flight bookings. Booking.com gave us to understand that they want to continue despite the ban. Sarah Douag analyses the situation.
In Europe, the number of industrial robots is also growing steadily; it is already the second largest market after China. Numa Group is raising $59 million in fresh capital without disclosing exactly what it plans to use it for. And Jaeder Serviced Apartments and Timehouse are two more real estate- and capital-driven newbees getting in on the action and looking to merge hotel and apartment living.
Just in time for Expo Real the project news is increasing again, we add a few more personalia to this issue and new useful and colourful news on our Marketplace. There you will also find the hospitalityInside INVESTMENT BAROMETER: How do you see the future for investment? Cast your vote, preferable right here, online. What does your gut say?
Our marketplace next week is Expo Real! From Tuesday, the team will be on the road in Munich, and from Wednesday, the 27 exhibitors of the "World of Hospitality" are waiting for you for the agreed talks: All info and contacts can be found on our new Expo Real website!
We'll see each other in Munich. Without crisis mood. Panic is not the order of the day in the hotel industry, as our experts believe today.
P.S. If you haven't found your way to our new website yet, click here!
Yours, Maria Pütz-Willems
editor-in-chief
