News & Stories

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Better to assess than to believe

Golden Tulip & more: How high is the risk facing franchise partners?

10.4.2009

Wiesbaden. Where large franchise companies such as the Golden Tulip hit difficulties, it's difficult not to ask yourself just how secure the franchise business is. A survey of franchisors conducted by hospitalityInside.com shows that they are well prepared against the risks.

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Mutual cooperation and antagonism of protagonists

Siemens matrix for decision makers (1): Hotel planning made efficient

10.4.2009

Munich. Hotel project planning rarely runs according to an efficiency-oriented, integrative plan. Compared to a relay race, the "batons" are not perfectly handed on within the added value chain, says Michael W. Hartmann, Senior Vice President Market Management Hospitality at Siemens. "The individual protagonists don't work together anymore. From investors to general contractors, on to consultants, developers and individual suppliers as well as operators, all parties involved usually talk at cross purposes. This results in friction and drives up costs." This is why Siemens has designed a matrix making it easier to recognise the intersections between the parties involved. In a guest article for hospitalityInside.com in two parts, Michael Hartmann explains the problems and provides investors, developers and hoteliers with concrete hints on sources of errors as well as possible approaches to rectifying them.

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Hotel stars: shining together in Germany, Austria, Switzerland

27.3.2009

Berlin. Germany, Austria and Switzerland intend to pool their efforts to develop a mutual set of criteria for hotel classification by 2011. The move is intended not only to harmonise classification but also to increase synergies between the three countries. Trade associations from the three countries have now placed their strategic partnership on a formal footing at a meeting in Berlin.

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NH: Reacting with a "what if analysis"

20.3.2009

Frankfurt. With a sales plus of 2.6 percent on 2007 and strategic decisions already in place for a possible slump, German NH Hoteles has already laid the foundation for a solid 2009. Jan Hein Simons, Managing Director of NH Hoteles Deutschland GmbH is confident that the group will successfully navigate through the economic and financial crisis and gives concrete examples of how the group will do exactly that.

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Caught in the break waves of the market

Rocco Forte: Two new hotels in sight - expansion untouched

6.3.2009

Munich. A ruminative Sir Rocco Forte sits on the canopy of the Charles Hotel in Munich, his face tanned by the Sicilian sun. He's just presented his two newest hotels on the Italian holiday island and in Prague to the media. Both hotels are scheduled to open in May. "I'm still optimistic," Forte stresses. This Wednesday, though, his mood is far from euphoric. As hospitalityInside.com asked him about his German hotels and the current rumours circulating about them, he responded with a notable unwillingness to expand on his answers with figures.

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Resort hotels are a strong pillar

After the 2008 figures: cautious optimism at Best Western

20.2.2009

Frankfurt. In Germany, the hoteliers of Best Western are not as pessimistic as many of their colleagues concerning the future. Although 60 percent of them expect their hotels to suffer a decrease in occupancy rates in the present year, 54 percent expect the prices to remain stable. In 2008 too, the Best Western Hotels experienced a slightly better development compared to the industry's average.

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Claim and counter-claim

Kempinski terminates contract for the Grand Hotel Heiligendamm

6.2.2009

Berlin. The notice of termination arrived in the night from Monday to Tuesday per fax at Heiligendamm. The official letter was received by the owner on Tuesday morning: Kempinski Hotels terminated its management contract with the Grand Hotel Heiligendamm & Co KG with immediate effect. The contract should have run to 2016. On Tuesday, reservation lines for the host hotel of the last G8 summit were already closed and the hotel had been removed from the Kempinski website. The hotel operator complained of "unreasonable interference" in operations by the owner and asserted claims for outstanding management fees amounting to over 1 million Euro; the owner quickly responded. Accusations on both sides are serious.

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Literature tip: "Manual Hospitality Management"

30.1.2009

Frankfurt. The new German manual "Handbuch Hospitality Management", edited by Prof Marco A. Gardini, is an industry guide tackling the hotel topics which will have strategic significance in the near future. A literature tip for industry veterans and newcomers alike.

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Strong in the region

Small chains: Victor's Residenz-Hotels

9.1.2009

Berlin. The hotel chain Victor's Residenz-Hotels, with its head office in Berlin, was founded in 1996 and operates eleven hotels in the whole of Germany today. It has worked its way to becoming one of the big chains of the small chains in Germany. Its latest takeover was a hotel in Saarlouis last year.

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The innovation dilemma

Findings from the industry: too many new products stress customers

19.12.2008

Munich. It looks like a stylish handbag but at the same time, it is also a solar battery charger for mobile phones, iPods or digital cameras: the "Solar Power Purse" of the US company Solarjo. The devices are connected and charged via an USB plug, which is integrated into the inside lining, and are therefore always ready for use. This is the look of a new, multi-functional handbag! Whether this clever solution will be a sales success remains to be seen. Until customers accept an innovative product, many barriers have to be overcome. Customers tend to stick to known products. Such results of the industry research should be food for thought for hotel managers too. Some of them like to demand too much of their guests concerning innovations.

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