Global Update
oN Hotelsmag . Com
IntervIew :
Nassetta oN HiltoN ’ s post-ipo plaNs
In an interview series with HOTELS , Chris Nassetta , Hilton Worldwide ’ s president and CEO , detailed how the company ’ s recent move to go public will affect its plans , including as-
Chris Nassetta
set sales , acquisitions and its pipeline in Europe .
Although he may face shareholders eager for Hilton to sell assets , Nassetta said not to expect a sales spree right away . “ We ’ re in a part of the cycle where it really is pretty close to the sweet spot in terms of what the upside potential is in real estate … we have lots of upside potential in terms of base operations , sort of EBITDA growth . We did a lot to create efficiencies in those hotels , and as the market continues to get better , RevPAR growth becomes more rate-driven and the group business comes back . There is a lot of upside in these assets . They ’ re still meaningfully off the prior peak as is the case with most big portfolios of real estate ,” Nassetta told HOTELS .
bloG :
How to improve tHe guestroom miNibar
HOTELSMag . com blogger Ed Ng , cofounder and director , AB Concept , Hong Kong and Bangkok , took on a challenging subject in one of his latest blog posts — how to improve the guestroom minibar .
“ Business travelers often have strict company policies for minibar consumption , and free minibar selections are especially refreshing for this key demographic … in fact , several hotel leaders are also making their minibars unique by including local artisanal delights , which reflects a sense of place . Moving beyond the prosaic in the minibar doesn ’ t necessitate stocking high-end items either ,” Ng wrote .
The blog post received a lot of interest from HOTELSMag . com readers , some of whom argued that complimentary or not , the guestroom minibar is doomed to be a money loser , while others asserted that the minibar could be a profit center if handled correctly .
Ed Ng
Read the full interview : http :// hotelsm . ag / 1p2Akzh
Read the full blog post : http :// hotelsm . ag / 1eedHyS exclUsIve :
CrestliNe ’ s growtH plaNs
Edward Hoganson |
Crestline Hotels & Resorts says it is will grow its U . S . management portfolio via select-service and fullservice hotels affiliated with major brands . Crestline will source deals for the REIT ARC and act as an operator for some and asset manager for all hotels the REIT acquires . |
“ We might not be the absolute lowest-cost model , but by driving the top line we get more juice to the bottom line ,” Crestline CFO Edward Hoganson told HOTELS . “ We have a robust sales and marketing team all headed by seasoned veterans . We always see |
more opportunity to drive revenue , as there is only so much that can be cut on the expense side . As a result , we have 120 % RevPAR penetration across our portfolio .”
Read the full interview : http :// hotelsm . ag / 1eurF3W
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18 HOTELS April 2014 www . hotelsmag . com