Partnerships Forge Long-term Success in Africa

SANDTON, South Africa—Thursday’s sessions at the Hospitality Investment Conference Africa reinforced the notion that it takes partnerships between owners, operators, franchisors and suppliers to make the global hotel industry a true force.
 
The industry is considered an emerging business in most of Africa’s 54 countries, and speakers emphasized throughout the day that collaboration is the name of the game for future growth.
 
Partnerships in Africa can take advantage of a growing middle class and more options for hotel development, speakers said repeatedly throughout the day.
 
Quote of the day
“You have three seconds from stopping someone’s thumbs from swiping you away.”
—Dion Chang, trend analyst with Flux Trends and moderator of the “Trends” session. He later added that Wi-Fi and battery power are the newest additions to Maslow’s hierarchy of human needs.
 
Photo of the day

Derek Hanekom, South Africa’s minister of tourism, answers questions from interviewer Jackie Asheeke, CEO of AE Consultancy, during Thursday’s HICA program. Hanekom told HICA attendees that while there are a host of investment incentives for investment in the hotel industry, the main objective is to encourage hotel owners to make themselves more competitive through more efficient operations that include sustainable solutions. “The hospitality industry needs to be responsive to what people are seeking,” he said. (Photo: Jeff Higley)

 
Slide of the day

Speakers throughout the first two days of HICA emphasized that there is plenty of room for international and regional brands to co-exist throughout Africa. On Thursday, Nnema Byrd, investment principal for Stanlib Africa Direct Development Fund, hammered home that point with this slide that shows the active brands in Sub-Saharan Africa. She noted that on average it takes more than four years to open a hotel in Africa.

 
Tweets of the day