Bangkok. The ascent of Minor Hotels started about 15 years ago with 12 hotels of the Anantara brand primarily located in Thailand. The next destination on the list was the Maldives. But then the management decided to pursue first opportunistic acquisitions. Minor became a global player itself – through the surprising acquisition of the NH Hotel Group. Dillip Rajakarier, since 2007 with the group and Group CEO for one year now, is a deal maker who has a lively temperament, mental flexibility and a fine instinct for special opportunities.

Munich. The future belongs to the metaverse: We will live in a mixed reality: The real and digital world will blend to such an extent that we shall find ourselves disconnecting rather than connecting. The data jungle will increase but will also provide positive and useful features due to open data, and it will free us from the power of large tech giants, for example. Travelling will become more valuable and precious, and hotels will be able to do without walls in future. Today, news from the future is provided by 2b AHEAD, the Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute as well as the future researchers Matthias Horx, Andreas Reiter and Horst Opaschowski.

Berlin/Vienna. The second Corona year, 2021, was again modest and remains extremely sober and partly bitter in its forecasts for 2022. MRP Consult Vienna and Berlin with a compact summary.

Munich. In view of climate change, feeding the world's population is becoming an even bigger global problem than before. Genetic engineering and food cultures can provide a remedy. Even the first Germans could imagine consuming "Cultured Meat" in the future.

Augsburg. Industrial robots have experienced a rapid increase in number. Professional service robots as well. Most service robots come from Europe, where demand is also growing from the hospitality industry. One robot removes 60 kilos of empty dishes on each run in the restaurant, another interacts with humans in real time via voice recognition, others work as fast as three and a half bartenders or will soon replace the night porter.

London. The pandemic hit Preferred Hotels just as it did other consortia, but the company still managed to keep the number of new additions relatively high over the last two years.

Hochheim/Frankfurt. So far, the budget chain B&B has continued to grow in the pandemic, partly through hotel takeovers. As a result, there are now two more room categories and more service, bringing in more revenue. Max Luscher on details.

Augsburg. Brookfield needs to invest its capital - which is why the hotel platform Edyn is growing. With the "hybrid hotel brands" Locke and Cove, the US asset manager is venturing from the UK to Germany for the first time. The style of opulent living, flexible working and leisure indoor and outdoor should convince.

Munich. The Serviced Apartment segment is moving through the current crisis with greater ease having suffered fewer blows. The strategies oscillate between classic hotel business and residential concept. Issues such as growth via franchise or senior living concepts marked the new hybrid spectrum, but also the growing pressure from all directions - also from the hotel chains. In the next few months, a separate ranking for Serviced Apartment operators is to be created.

Cologne. "It was an opportunity to be present in other spaces again, for banks, investors and insurance companies, and have good discussions, even if they do still treat the hotel industry with kid gloves," Karl-Heinz Pawlizki, CEO of Dorint Hotels & Resorts, says drawing a positive conclusion on the quieter Wednesday of Expo Real. For those he had discussions with, he had the 2020 Annual Report with him. The company again sees itself on a good path.