Shishangeni Private Lodge in the Kruger National Park has become embroiled in a tug-of-war, with both Signature Life Hospitality and Three Cities claiming the management, marketing and sales rights for the property.
Last week, Signature Life issued a media statement stating that the group had taken over the management, sales and marketing contract for Shishangeni Private Lodge, which comprises three camps: Shishangeni Private Lodge; Camp Shonga; and Camp Shawu. The owners of the lodge are POPCRU Group of Companies (PGC).
CEO of Three Cities, Mike Lambert, responded with surprise and claimed the media reports were the first he had heard of the news. “This contract is valid until June 2012 and until then it is business as usual as far as we are concerned. The lodges are still represented on the Three Cities website, reservations are still being made via Three Cities’ central reservations and the sales network is still representing the product.”
He added, “The terms of the contract are clear and should there be any contractual concerns there is a prescribed resolution process that is in place to deal with this eventuality. I could only attribute the devious nature of this announcement to possible financial challenges that are facing the lodges at present.”
Signature Life quickly hit back and stated: “The relationship between the two parties (PGC and Three Cities) had become so toxic that Shishangeni Lodge was left with no option but to call off the partnership and to appoint a new management company.” In a media statement, PGC accuses Three Cities of various contractual breaches leading them to take on a new partner to manage the property. These include allegations of failing to appoint a general manager for the past 12 months as well as neglecting to send a senior executive to the lodge since March this year.
PGC claims that several attempts were made to invite Three Cities to meetings in an effort to amicably rectify the situation, but to no avail. “Therefore, PGC is satisfied it did everything reasonable to look for an amicable resolution to the impasse, but it was always rebuffed by Three Cities. Given the fact that Three Cities never afforded PGC an opportunity to resolve the dispute, the contract notwithstanding, PGC had no option but to order Three Cities out of the Shishangeni Lodge in the interest of the business.”
Three Cities has denied these allegations, stating that they are “totally fabricated and defamatory”. Lambert says the group is still attempting to resolve the matter with its client so that clarity can be established for the benefit of the travel industry at large. “Three Cities will continue to assist with taking reservations for Shishangeni Lodge until further notice.” He added that Three Cities is currently dealing with the matter via its attorneys.
