Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP) recently established an official presence in India with the charter of a new chapter, the HFTP India Chapter. The new chapter is designed to serve members from throughout India. It is based in Mumbai and has a current membership of 20 hospitality professionals from all over the country who hold a mix of positions in the areas of finance and technology.
In a bid to ensure the quality of hospitality finance and technology education within the global hospitality industry, Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP) has formed an affiliation with the Hotel Controllers and Accountants Association of Hong Kong (HCAA). The goal of this new partnership is to combine resources that will increase their respective members access to quality education, networking and certification programs.
With around 3,620 new hotel rooms in the branded segment expected to be operational over the next three years, the hospitality industry in Chennai is expected to be constrained in the near term, though the adverse impact is expected to be short-lived, according to a study from real estate services firm Jones Lang Lasalle, India.
The Mumbai-based company has approached Orient-Express about a deal, though discussions are at an early stage and may fail to lead to an agreement, the people said, declining to be identified as deliberations are private. Indian Hotels owns 6.9 percent of Hamilton, Bermuda-based Orient-Express, whose market value has jumped 32 percent this year to $1.2 billion.
Mirvac Group has sold its hotel management business Mirvac Hotels & Resorts and associated investments to a consortium including Accor Asia Pacific and Ascendas for 327 million Australian dollars (US$327 million). The transaction includes 46 hotels across Australia and New Zealand and represents a 15.1% premium to the carrying value of those assets as at 30 June.
Intelligent Spas' new Singapore Spa Benchmark Report identified the spa industry underwent significant changes between 2009 and 2010. "Unprecedented changes have occurred in the Singapore spa market which are the most dramatic seen by Intelligent Spas within any spa industry it has studied over the last 10 years", explained Julie Garrow, Managing Director of 100% independent research company Intelligent Spas (www.IntelligentSpas.com).
Nasdaq-listed Home Inns & Hotels Management Inc. (HMIN) is close to buying the company that owns China's Motel 168 chain from Morgan Stanley (MS) and other shareholders for about US$500 million in a cash and stock deal that will fetch around half what the owners originally sought, according to three people familiar with the transaction.
As we enter 2011 and start the next decade, it is both important and relevant to look back at the last decade to understand how our industry has evolved during this period and what we can learn from these ten very interesting years. At the beginning of the last decade, we were a country with only a limited number of international brands and had hotels that were mainly concentrated in the major metros and predominantly in the luxury/first class positioning. Over the years, the hotel industry has undergone significant changes and has reinvented itself in a manner that we believe has benefited the industry as a whole, including all its constituents – hotel guests, investors, employees and other stakeholders.
The largest ever collection of accommodation industry CEOs and other senior executives to appear at an event in the Australia, New Zealand and Pacific region, has been announced for ANZPHIC 2011 - the main annual event on the hotel industry calendar - and its pre-event, the inaugural Serviced Apartment Summit. The two conferences will be held from 22 to 24 June 2011 in Sydney. For details visit www.anzphic.com
Viceroy Hotels Ltd, a franchisee of global hospitality major Marriott International Inc, said it will hive off its 5.6-billion-rupee Chennai project division to raise cash. The company on Monday, in a filing with the Bombay Stock Exchange, said its board approved of the move to sell the unit that includes its 387-room luxury hotel and residential projects in Chennai. The hotel chain, in an effort to cut out debt on its balance sheet, has opted to sell one project after the other. It, currently, has a total debt of 4.5 billion rupees, the company told PTI.
The hosts of the Hotel Investment Forum India (HIFI) have announced that The Honourable Kumari Selja, India's Minister of Tourism, will provide the keynote address at the event, scheduled for January 12-14, 2011, at the Renaissance Mumbai Hotel & Convention Centre in Mumbai, India. HIFI is co-hosted by BHN and Horwath HTL, India.
Hotel Indigo Shanghai on the Bund, Hotel Indigo's first property in Asia Pacific, opens its doors in December 2010. Sitting directly on the Huangpu River front, Hotel Indigo Shanghai on the Bund assures not only spectacular views of both the historic Bund and dramatic Pudong skylines, but an upscale boutique hotel experience where the focus is on inspired service, fresh and vibrant design reflecting the local neighbourhood, and providing guests with an authentic taste of today's Shanghai, where old and new converge.
Kosmopolito Hotels International Limited (KHI) (HKSE: 2266) has announced that it had entered into a sale and purchase agreement with an independent third party on 1 December 2010 to sell the total interests of Excel Chinese International Limited (ECIL) for a total consideration of HK$290 million (approximately HK$5.3 million per room) less existing bank loan.
Diversified conglomerate ITC Group and hospitality major EIH have drawn up a blueprint to combine and emerge as the country’s largest hotel chain by revenues. Once the plan fructifies, it would see a three-way venture between the two groups and Reliance Industries (RIL) which recently picked up 14.8% stake in EIH. Currently, the Oberois hold 32% stake in EIH, while ITC holds 14.98%.
Hotel Okura's objective is to strengthen global competitiveness and establish its position as a Japan-originating global hotel chain that contributes to Japan's hotel industry. The company operates mainly in Japan and other Asian regions, and strives to become the number one hotel in each destination.
The 10th Anniversary of the Annual Australian, New Zealand and Pacific Hotel Industry Conference (ANZPHIC) kicked off officially today at the Hilton Sydney, Australia. More than 400 hotel owners, investors, developers, operators, lenders, advisers and other stakeholders joined in this annual event to get updated with the latest market happenings, share experiences and network.
Carlson, a privately-owned, global hospitality and travel company, today announced that it has completed the acquisition of the majority interest in RHW Hotel Management Services Ltd (RHW). Pursuant to the announcement it had made on January 13, 2010, Carlson now owns 87% of RHW. RHW is a leading hotel management and consultancy services company in India that has successfully managed Carlson-branded hotels in the country since 1998.
Japan Airlines Corp., undergoing a state-backed rehabilitation process, plans to sell its hotel operating unit JAL Hotels Co. to the operator of Hotel Okura, as part of its efforts to swiftly return to profitability by focusing on its mainstay business, sources familiar with the matter said Friday.
As the impact of the GFC on hotel guest demand, room rates and capital markets finally begins to abate in Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific, astute owners and operators are looking to the future and working hard to get their hotels, resorts and serviced apartments Back on Track.
More than 500 delegates congregated at the 6th Annual China Hotel Development and Financing Conference, organized by Horwath HTL in conjunction with STR Global and the China Tourist Hotels Association (CTHA). The event was held from 24-26 March, 2010 at the Crowne Plaza Sun Palace, Beijing, China.