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Seeing the Big Opportunity

It's been a busy year for Virgin Atlantic, with new leadership, a big joint venture announced, plenty of restructuring and a review of all parts of the business. Their man in Johannesburg also has a new job, so editor Dylan Rogers tracked down Simon Newton-Smith, the man now heading up the Middle East & Africa, and managed to grab 20 minutes of his time over coffee in Hyde Park.

Clearer Focus

Sun International has always been a gaming group with hotels, but that focus began to blur with the emergence of some of the group’s more iconic properties. As a result, the last three years of introspection have brought the South African gaming giant back in line with a more clearly-defined strategy, as explained by CEO Graeme Stephens to Dylan Rogers in Johannesburg.

Making Africa Work

Delta Air Lines Regional Director - Africa, Middle East and India, Jimmy Eichelgruen shares his thoughts on what goes into making an international airline operation work in Africa.

Strengthening Presence

Starwood Hotels & Resorts is one of the big players on the international hotel scene, with a portfolio of nearly 250 properties, including 37 hotels in 19 African countries. That number is set to grow, as Starwood, like most of its competitors, has plans to further strengthen its presence here. Editor Dylan Rogers sat down at Meetings Africa with Martina Boettcher, the group’s Regional Director of Marketing for Africa & Indian Ocean, to get a clearer idea of what the Starwood approach is.

Interesting Times

Ed Frost believes the global airline industry is in as tricky a place as it has ever been since 2008. That’s off the back...

A different model

Former Rezidor and Faircity hotel executive Mark Wernich recently joined Preferred Hotels & Resorts in Cape Town, which is where editor Dylan Rogers caught...

Service With a Smile

Vishal Koovejee, CEO of Salsa Tours, had coffee with Editor Dylan Rogers to chat about the wholesale corporate travel industry

All About the Experience

Sun International has gone through a period of introspection, questioning just what exactly it is, besides a South African group of hotel and gaming properties. One of the by-products of this introspection has been the launch of the group’s Sunlux Collection. Chief Marketing and Strategy Officer Rob Collins and Group Manager: Marketing Alison McKie joined editor Dylan Rogers for a chat about this product, and the group as a whole.

Adding a Bit of Pizzazz

Tsogo Sun is an African hotel, gaming and entertainment giant, with a portfolio of 14 casinos and over 90 properties across Africa and the Seychelles. It’s no surprise then that they have a couple of experienced operators on their payroll, such as Gauteng North Director of Operations Norman Wallace at Tsogo Sun’s 54 on Bath property in Johannesburg.

I’m not a robot

It’s the biggest South African TMC story of 2019. The details – for those in the industry – are well-known, but here’s a quick recap. American...

All About ‘Experiential’ Hospitality

Birchwood Management Company MD Lindiwe Sangweni-Siddo went from strutting her stuff at the Sandton Sun to launching her own company, becoming a Holiday Inn franchisee, opening the Soweto Hotel, and then taking up her current position, all in the space of about seven years. BT Africa editor met her for coffee in Sandton and set about picking her brain.

A ‘brand’ new future

Hilton Hotels & Resorts has a healthy African development pipeline of 52 hotels, and the group plans to enter 14 new countries over the...