2009 - CRE

30
Interview:
There’s­a­crisis­now­and­a­lot­of­developershave­already­frozen­their­projects.­Yet­you­areplanning­to­open­a­new­Marriott­hotel­called­Renaissance­Moscow­Monarch­Centre.­I­wonderwhether­you­are­going­to­make­any­correctionsregarding­your­brand­expansion­to­Russiagiven­the­rampant­crisis.
I­am­not­actually­a­representative­of­­
Marriott­as­such­as­I­work­for­Interstate­
Hotels­&­Resorts.­All­Marriott­hotelsin­Moscow­we­manage­are­franchiseproperties.­Interstate­Hotels­&­Resortsis­a­hotel­management­company.­Whenthe­investor­planned­the­Renaissance­
Monarch­Centre­Hotel­we­worked­togetherto­decide­which­brand­would­be­bestfor­the­new­hotel.­And­we­decided­touse­a­Marriott­brand­because­this­is­avery­strong­brand.­Actually­all­Marriottbrands­are­very­strong­and­work­especially­well­in­times­of­crisis.­Interestinglyenough,­when­I­first­came­to­Moscow­inautumn­1998,­I­took­over­a­hotel,­whichwe­later­rebranded­as­a­Marriott.­It­wasnot­a­Marriott­Hotel­when­I­came­butwe­rebranded­it­in­January­1999.­Now­itis­good­for­us­to­open­a­new­hotel­withanother­Marriott­brand.
Anthony
Fardon:
author:
Ekaterina­Krylova
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photography:
Dmitry­Chetverukhin
­ Hotels­are­also­feeling­a­decrease­in­thedemand­from­its­customers,­just­like­businessesand­shopping­centers.­Furthermore,­hotelinvestments­have­a­longer­payback­timeframeand­the­final­success­depends­highly­on­themanagement.­Today­we­are­discussing­all­of­theseissues­with­Anthony­Fardon,­General­Manager,­
Renaissance­Moscow­Monarch­Centre­.
“This is really a longsighted
strategy to build a hotel now”
Does­this­mean­the­Marriott­brand­reallyhelps­to­solve­the­occupancy­problem­and­toattract­more­business­tourists,­for­example?Yes,­it­certainly­helps.­The­brand­is­goodto­attract­corporate­clients,­business­people,and­tourists­alike.­It’s­going­to­be­a­very­nicehotel­in­every­respect.
Does­the­construction­project­go­as­itwas­planned?It­does,­we­are­going­to­open­our­hotelat­the­end­of­June;­it­was­planned­that­way,and­an­office­block­and­a­shopping­centreare­also­being­constructed­within­the­same­
complex.­Construction­works­picked­up­pacein­November-December.­From­then­on­theworks­have­been­going­very­fast.
Now­there­are­certain­investment­dilemmas.­
Some­say­it’s­not­quite­wise­to­start­building­a­hotel­in­a­crisis­market,­since­retailor­office­properties­could­possibly­bring­ahigher­return.This­is­actually­an­interesting­question.­A­lot­of­people­understand­that­itis­possibly­something­to­think­of­but­Ibelieve­this­is­a­very­longsighted­move­onthe­part­of­the­investor­to­open­a­hotel­