The operator's opinion
“Owners in the Middle East are different to those in the west. In addition to the ROI plan, it is important for them to know who they are dealing with, and how much trust is there from the beginning. Our best ‘sales team’ is our owners. They are the ones who recommend us to each other. This is the best referral any company could have.”
Nasser Al Nowais, chairman, Rotana

“Perfection may be a tall order and perhaps there is no such thing [as a perfect owner] in the same way as there is no perfect operator. I believe that in all cases, one must appreciate that all relationships are different and individual and that one must focus on the strengths that each party brings to the relationship and to concurrently work together on areas which require more special attention.”
Paul Pisani, SVP hotel development, Corinthia Hotels

“I have been running hotels for 40 years, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t an owner who has an idea or suggestion that makes it better. There are some sorts of owners who have no interest in what goes on, they want to see the results at the end of the month or end of the year and that’s fine too.

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Some owners want to come by every week and have a meeting and find out what is going on — both are fine with us. I have had many wonderful ideas that made me a better hotel person come from a person who wanted to be involved. I do think, by the way, that the actual running of hotels is best left to hotel operators, but the input which might be provided by others is always welcome.”
Eric Danziger, President and CEO,Wyndham Hotel Group