Spanish hotel company Meliá Hotels International has established a strategic partnership with Chinese realtor Greenland Group, to drive hotel development in the European and Chinese markets for both companies.
For Greenland Group, an immediate impact of the agreement will be the launch of its urban hotel brand in Europe, through the adaptation and re-branding of a Meliá operated hotel in the Frankfurt. This puts it among the first Chinese hotel brands to open in Europe, aiming to attract business and leisure travellers from both continents.
In the short and medium term, Greenland Group will continue to grow its urban brand in Europe and China, and will cooperate with Meliá Hotels International in further development projects over the coming years.
Meanwhile, this agreement will allow Meliá to open two new hotels in Jinan, scheduled for 2013, and Tianjin. Further down the line, there is scope to increase the presence of the most successful Meliá brands in China, such as Innside and Meliá in the city hotel business, and Paradisus in the emerging resort hotel business.
The partnership also entails cooperation in the areas of training, global hotel distribution systems, and procurement, responding to a mutual need to grow the international customer base and to improve the awareness of the hotel brands operated by both groups in the complex Chinese and European markets. One area of expertise that Greenland will share with its Spanish counterparts is that of Chinese cuisine, helping Meliá to excel in providing services to the Chinese guests.
Gabriel Escarrer, Vice Chairman and CEO of Meliá hotels International said; “In the new world tourism paradigm, China will soon become the largest market on the planet for both in and outbound travel.
“The presence of the Meliá brands is therefore key to our success in the Asia Pacific region and for our business and resort hotels in the rest of the world.”