News & Stories
In January 2005 Rob Hornmann took up his post as Managing Director of Accor Dorint SMARD, in charge of more than 50 000 Accor and Dorint hotel rooms. The company was founded in 2003 to merge the distribution and marketing structures of Accor Hotellerie Germany GmbH and Dorint AG.
Rob Hornmann
Rob Hornman had been running the sales department as Senior Vice President since July 2004. After seven years in charge of distribution and marketing for Accor Asia he moved to the Accor headquarters in Paris. There he was responsible for International Sales. Joost Serrarens and Toni Leiner will support him now in distribution.
Steffen Weidemann, former Dorint executive board member, resigned as Managing Director of SMARD at the end of 2004. Following that he has been a consultant to Accor. Weidemann had successfully implemented the branding strategy of Accor and Dorint. Marketing and distribution for the brands Dorint Sofitel, Dorint Novotel, Novotel, Dorint Resorts & Spa, Mercure, Suitehotel, Ibis, Etap and Formule 1 have merged.
In the wake of the turbulences at Dorint, Dr Michael Theim has learned to keep his head above water. His executive board membership has recently been extended for a further three years. However, Theim’s partner in the board, Jochen Dobel from Accor, will be replaced by Daniel Vrancx. He comes from Accor as well and has been a supervisory board member of Dorint AG.
Bangkok. A surge in expansion regarding Six Senses resorts and spas: the luxury hotel group is aiming at managing at least six further resorts and 40 spas worldwide - even in cooperation with other hotel chains.
Munich. New brains from the House of Accor occupy former Dorint positions, the tight cost management remains, it all boils down to selective brand alignment. Two years after the merging of the french bed provider with Germany's biggest hotel chain, there is a new wind blowing in the relationship between Accor and Dorint. Accor is also continuing to develop its own profile in the German market.
Frankfurt/M. While restructuring their sales team, Steigenberger worked together with the company Flow in Celle, Germany. It used a training system "Jobfidence" which was developed in 1964. The data of 10.000 specialists and executive staff are stored in the "Jobfidence" system to provide a standard by which others can be measured. Steigenberger staff was compared with the best 1000. Interviews were subsequently held with each individual sales member to determine their relative strengths and weaknesses. They were given a list of suggestions about professional training measures especially targeted to themselves.
Sales Check
Frankfurt/M. Since the proposed sale to the Arabella-Sheraton hotel group failed around two years ago, the Steigenberger hotel group is now concentrating on a strategic reorientation of itself. Its latest move: the setting up of a "Global Sales Force", including an additional 30 sales staff.
Rome. ".... and it pays off." One year after launching "SPG.TV," the new television channel for Starwood Europe’s hotel guests, its innovators are proud of its economic success. Colourful pictures and emotive dialogue create improved customer relationship and attract new promotion partners.
Madrid. The Spanish hotel group NH Hoteles, which took over the German business hotels of the Astron Group in 2002, continues to surprise the industry over and over again. Now it is even rumoured that there will be a takeover. However, NH still believes in its own strength and the recovery of the German market. At the opening of NH's first "nhube" restaurant in Frankfurt, Gabriele Burgio, Chairman and President of NH Hoteles S. A. answered a few questions - keeping them short and concise.
Munich. Roughly two months after their announcement, Schoerghuber Unternehmensgruppe located in Munich and ITT Sheraton Corporation signed an agreement about founding a joint-venture company last Friday. Now the monopolies and mergers commission has to approve the deal by the end of February. According to this agreement, the four Sheraton and 12 of the 14 Arabella Hotels in Germany, Switzerland and on the Balearic/Canary Islands will bear the common name of "ArabellaSheraton". This marks the first "co-branding" of two chains on the German hotel market. Looking back on the beginning of the ArabellaSheraton brand in 1998.