HT010218

Checking In
THE LATEST INDUSTRY NEWS FOR HOTEL EXECUTIVES FROM CANADA
AND AROUND THE WORLD
STATE OF THE INDUSTRY
Canadian hotel industry comes together at the Western Canadian
Lodging Conference
BY ERIC ALISTER
The biggest names in the
Canadian hotel industry
came together under one roof
in November at the 2017 Western
Canadian Lodging Conference at the
Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver.
HVS managing director and
partner, Carrie Russell and CBRE
Hotels VP, Scott Duff kicked off the
day with an in-depth update on the
2017 financial performance of hotels
in Western Canada. The overall trend
showed a strong B.C. and Manitoba
and a slowly recovering Alberta, but a
deeply troubled Saskatchewan, whose
RevPAR dropped by nearly 5.9 per
cent. As a nation, however, 2017 has
proven to be a record-breaking year.
For the first time, national RevPAR
will exceed $100, poised to grow more
than seven per cent by the end of
the year, stated Russell. It marks the
largest increase in the cycle and the
eighth-consecutive year of growth.
“The U.S. tone and policy is driving
people into the Canadian market,”
said Russell. “We’re seeing U.S. traffic
up four per cent; European traffic is
up by almost two per cent; and Asian
traffic has increased by 7.8 per cent.
In 2018, continued supply growth is
expected, with a projected increase of
one per cent in 2018.
The afternoon’s first group of
speakers, moderated by Brian Flood
of Cushman & Wakefield Ltd.,
continued the discussion of buying
and selling properties with an emphasis
on legal and brokerage matters.
Jason Arbuck of Cassels Brock &
Blackwell provided valuable tips on
handling both ends of a deal. He
cautioned buyers not to wait until the
last minute to commission a lawyer.
Most often, lawyers are called in for
the final signing of documents, when
it is too late if legal issues are found.
“Clients will often call and say, ‘We
just need to you to look this over.
We’re signing today,’” said Arbuck.
“They’re not looking for you to
change anything at that point. But as
a buyer, you want to think about what
legal issues you may have. Often,
there’s a small permitting or licensing
issue that hasn’t really impacted
operation but you know something is
not quite right as the lawyers start to
go through it and they’re going to ask
you about that.”
Billy Coles, president and CEO of
BCP Construction and CCR Hospitality
had strong words of advice for
potential sellers. “When you’re going
to sell a property, make sure you know
your numbers,” he said. “Make them
give you an offer, so that you don’t
give a number that might be lower
than what you want. But make sure
you know what you’re willing to sell
for. If the opportunity comes, press
the button. Know what you want and
do it. Don’t wait.”
All panelists were also in agreement
that executives should avoid
transparency with staff during an
acquisition process as it has almost
always proven to be messy in their
experience. You may feel compelled
to involve your staff in the process
because they’re part of the family and
you care about them, said Milroy, but
you have to practice great caution
because it can backfire.
The conference also featured
sessions on investing, buying and
selling, and the current economic and
political atmosphere in Canada.
PLAYING FAIR
Susie Grynol, president of the Hotel
Association of Canada, shared that she is
working with the government of Canada
to improve labour shortages and more will
be announced about the initiative soon. “I
want to encourage you to get involved,”
she said. “Go to fairrules.ca and send a
pre-populated letter to your MP.”
TRAVEL STATS
According to HVS managing director and
partner, Carrie Russell, travel from Mexico
is up 51 per cent “as Mexican travellers
who want to take a vacation outside the
country are not seeing the U.S. as a very
welcoming place right now.”
hoteliermagazine.com
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018 HOTELIER 3