HOME | FIND A HOTEL | WOW TRAVEL | JETSETTER | PRESS | ABOUT US
From our Correspondents
Around The World Russia&CIS Hotel Investment Conference
Russia&CIS Hotel
Investment Conference
Oh the glory of St Petersburg, Russia – shown, a
detail of the Winter Palace, which houses the
Hermitage, the museum-of-museums
By: Mary Gostelow
The Who Is Who of the Luxury Hotel World were in St
Petersburg end of October 2009, and many arrived early, or
stayed on, to visit the Hermitage, the ballet, the opera…
Why were these top hoteliers in town? Well, the annual Russia&CIS Hotel
Investment Conference (RHIC) was held in St Petersburg, Russia, October
25-27, 2009. There were 360 delegates, a remarkably good number in
view of the current economy and the obstacle of getting a Russian visa –
170 of the delegates were not Russian. All must have agreed, however,
that getting there was really worthwhile. Sessions were good, social
events sensational, and networking was producing, in some cases,
immediate business. Big players in Russia were highly prominent, with
the strong IHG delegation sitting front-row for many sessions: as Kirk
Kinsell, President EAME region for InterContinental Hotel Group IHG
said, his company has been in Russia for ten years now, it has 14 hotels
in Russia-CIS with a future pipeline of nearly 20, and growing presence
here helps the outbound market veer to IHG brands when travelling
overseas.
The television series Dragons’ Den provided inspiration for the riveting
‘RHIC Investment Den’. Four developers presented projects, which were
assessed by three investors, Georg Folian, CFO Warimpex; David
Geovanis, MD Russia, L&R; Dmitry Tetiouchev, Head Russia/CIS, Ernst &
Young. Tomas Dukala, VP Morgan Stanley, presented Absolute Group’s
already-built seven-floor, 128-room St Petersburg’s super-luxury
Ostrovskogo Square project. Yuri Ilyin, CEO of LSR Global’s A Plus Estate
Company, presented possible adaptation of the existing five-floor St
Petersburg No 1 Nevsky Prospekt, which could be a small boutique hotel,
a larger luxury hotel, or 30-apartments which would sell at Monte Carlo
prices (which all the potential investors preferred to either of the hotel
alternatives). Rudolf Schmid, Partner Environmental & Real Estate
Consulting EREC, stressed Ukraine: he showed two nearby slots, one for
hotel, one for offices, on the river in central Kiev, which currently only
has three hotel rooms per 1,000 residents. Oleg Shaposhnikov, Director
of Nikolskiye Ryady CJSC, presented the conversion of an existing 1789
merchant-shop building in St Petersburg old town to a Crowne Plaza
hotel, with new office towers planned for the central courtyard. When
the potential investors 'placed' their allocated ‘money’, which came to
50 million Euro each, the results were Yuri Ilyin 59 million, Oleg
Shaposhnikov 50 million Euro, Tomas Dukala 31 million Euro, Rudolf
Schmid ten million Euro.
There was talk of 12,700 additional rooms being planned in the
combined Sochi-area coastal complex and the mountain Krasnaya
Polyana area, in readiness for the 2014 Winter Olympics, but who would
need them other than during the Games? Suggestions included
marketing to the 250-million Russian speaking people, including Israelis
(who do not need Russian visas), to old people and, during school
holidays, family groups might work. But, as it was pointed out, you can
Login | Sign Up
Sign up for the Free
WOW Confidential
Newsletter
Your Email Address
Advertisement
General Director of Mospromstroi, sadly could not make it. The only
other prominent no-show, by the way, was Valentina Matvienko,
Governor of St Petersburg, but the Government’s Chairman of the
Committee for Economic Development, Industrial Policy and Trade
Maxim Sokolov ably filled in for her: this is the third year in a row, he
said, where his city sees an additional 1,300 rooms added, there are
over 150 new hotels planned and the industry has been recognized as
crucial to his strategic project.
Sessions, with simultaneous translation throughout, were magnificently
organized at the Corinthia St Petersburg, which the first night hosted a
Vegas-type extravaganza with long laser show, Bond Girl-lookalikes and
a white-suited pianist on a white Steinway. Overall organizers were Jon
Leibowitz, evp Questex Media Group, and Jonathan Worsley, chairman
Bench Events.
Co-host from the hotel side was the Grand Hotel Europe, which held
another gala on the second evening of the conference, with yet more
glorious buffets (and a caviar room) and a full orchestra. This is one of
those hotels that is always active – the night before RHIC began, it was a
main sponsor at the ballet finals HYPERLINK TO ATW ST PETERSBURG
BALLET. Earlier in the month, on October 13, 2009 the Grand Hotel
Europe has held a charity “Plant a Tree” in the SOS Children’s Village
Pushkin for orphans. The event was timed to coincide with three
important anniversaries: 60 years of the SOS Kinderdorf International
charity organisation, 20 years of the Convention on the Rights of
Children, and 15 years of the Children’s Villages – SOS Russia
organisation. The event was arranged by the Grand Hotel Europe’s
Charity Foundation for children and the foundation’s President, Thomas
Noll, and was actively supported by the staff of the hotel. “It was no
coincidence that we chose to plant fruit trees,” said Thomas Noll. “Like
them, the young residents of the SOS children’s village should grow,
blossom and prosper in their future lives.”
A total of 70 fruit trees and bushes were planted. At the top of the alley
of trees, Thomas Noll and Sergei Yakovenko, the director of the
children’s village, planted two rowan trees. This event’s participants
included famous actor Yury Galtsev; TV presenter Anna Fradkina; mother
of famous football player Tatyana Arshavina; the deputy consul of the
Consulate General of Finland, Paula Karppinen; the wife of the general
consul of Switzerland, Edith Hueck; the general director of Radio Zenit,
Elena Vorozheva; the chief editor of Russky Metsenat, Arkady Sosnov;
the chief editor of Interbusiness magazine, Vera Dmitrieva; the publisher
of Svetsky Peterburg magazine, Natalya Takmakova; the PR director of
Khlebny Dom, Irina Galieva; a priest from the Tsarskoe Selo district,
 fly from Moscow to the French Riviera for 400 Euro but it is 500 Euro for Father Gleb (Grozovsky); Alexei Ekimov from Rusbank; Natalya Volvich
the two-hour flight to Sochi. There is also the challenge of transport for from Sberbank Russia; Alfia Rakhmatulina, a friend of the village; and
hotel employees. Vasily Markov from Deloitte.

HSH Prince George Yourievsky, the Patron of RHIC 2009, said Russia has
land, water and most key resources. Whenever anyone has attacked Grand Hotel Europe, St. Petersburg, Russia
Russia in the past, it has survived. Among other duties here, he See other hotels in St. Petersburg (4)
presented the Lifetime Achievement award to Hank Ciaffone, Sign up for Confidential Newsletter
International President of Interstate Hotels & Resorts, who pioneered Send this article to a friend
foreign management in Russia – the co-recipient, Boris Guretsky, View other Around the World Articles

BACK SEARCH ARTICLES: Type Keyword Here NEXT

Miami... more please! Enjoy the snow in Chamonix

My Favorite Restaurants Whether you are jumping out of
Mediterranean cuisine restaurant is helicopters, have almost made it
1Bleu, the new restaurant just down a slope on a toboggan or are
opened at our resort hotel ... more somewhere in-between, you know
By: Kleber Topiol that nothing comes cl... more
By: Barnaby Wharton

ABOUT US | PRESS | HOTELIERS | TRAVEL AGENTS | TRAVELERS | DIRECTORY | PARTNERS | GUESTBOOK | SITEMAP © 2009 Kiwi Collection Inc. All Rights Reserved | Mobile | Contact | Privacy