NEGOTIATIONS between United States (US) hospitality group, Marriott International and The Don Suites hotels are at an "advanced" stage and, if successful, will result in the signing of a management contract between Marriott's Ramada International Hotels and Resorts brands and The Don Group.
The Don Group's chief executive officer, Thabiso Tlelai - an empowerment hotelier who made headlines earlier this year when he purchased the group for R1 - told Travel Now that the initial intention of franchising the 12 Gauteng and Cape Town Don Suites to operate under the Ramada brand, had been reconsidered.
According to him, the group wants more "than a name and a brand" and would like to see a sharing of expertise from the two different markets.
"We decided to get them to put their money where their mouths are - so to speak - and ask for a bit more commitment from both parties. A management contract makes more sense seen from that perspective."
Tlelai says he would not like to pre-empt announcements about specifics until the contracts are finalised but did say that the partnership of a US$7bn hotel group would result in making The Don Group a "major player on a global scale".
"It will most certainly have several positive spin-offs, including a positive increase in inbound business." The hotels' main client base is currently the foreign and domestic corporate business.
According to Tlelai, The Don Group currently has vacancies in key management positions in sales, marketing and operations, although these positions will remain open until negotiations are concluded.
"These are critical positions and we would like Ramada's input."
While negotiations are in progress, The Don Suites hotels are reported to be running "as normal", with occupancy rates peaking in the high 60%, although the long holiday periods resulted in a drop to 57-58%.
(Adele Mackenzie)
