Hotel & Motel Management - February 18, 2008 - (Page 19)

www.HotelMotel.com/digital_edition HotelMotel.com | H&MM February 18, 2008 Special Report INTERNATIONAL FRANCHISING give them to a market like Japan,” he said. “The obvious thing is the size of the country; there’s no way the room can be the same size.” Pearce also cited potential franchisee concerns regarding advertising, training and rate strategy. “Our franchisees internationally are looking for a company that can be ﬂexible and adapt its systems to be relevant,” he said. hgunter@questex.com 19 “Some disclosure laws require the franchisor to provide market studies and ﬁnancial forecasts,” she said. “For a franchise brand that is new to a foreign market, this can be a difﬁcult exercise.” Kinsell said franchising is not as well understood or valued even in some more developed markets. “Perhaps some people might have cut their teeth on someone who failed their expectations and left a sour note with them,” he said. “We obviously have to overcome those objections. “The challenge is introducing the model of being in business for yourself but not by yourself.” You can’t take the approach that what works in the U.S., with some slight modiﬁcations, should work everywhere, Pearce said. “There’s no way you could take U.S. brand standards and IHG The ﬁrst European Holiday Inn opened in Leiden, Netherlands, in 1968 (garden restaurant pictured). “They’ve got infrastructure, scope and a network of locations,” Pearce said. InterContinental Hotels Group has never entered into master franchise agreements, although it might enter into agreements with some territorial opportunities for a franchisee, said Kirk Kinsell, president, Europe, Middle East and Africa, IHG. “A master franchise can be fraught with issues because there’s then a separation, there’s an intermediary, a middleman between the franchisee and the brand itself with somebody who’s having to invest behind aligning all these services, who may or may not have a vested interest long term in the brand and Kinsell in the relationIHG ship,” he said. Franchise regulations IHG’s international franchise agreements are structured similarly to agreements in the U.S., Kinsell said, but registration requirements and disclosure document requirements vary. “They range from the [United Kingdom], where there is no regulatory framework, to Russia, where it is highly bureaucratic and complex and local language is required,” he said. Numerous countries, including France, Belgium, Italy, Spain and Sweden, have enacted franchise disclosure laws, according to Babette Märzheuser-Wood, partner in the franchising group at European law ﬁrm Field Fisher Waterhouse LLP. CIRCLE NO. 128 http://www.HotelMotel.com/digital_edition http://HotelMotel.com http://pgproline.com http://pgproline.com

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Hotel & Motel Management - February 18, 2008 Contents ALIS Attendees: Bumpy Road Ahead Denihan Expands with James Hotel Purchase AAA Updates its Diamond Rating Guidelines Perspective Letters to the Editor Legal FAQ Satisfaction Trends Sales Clinic HotelWorld Update Trends & Stats Locally Grown Food Gains Popularity Companies Cultivate International Ties Wireless Internet Access Opens Up Possibilities Ice Machine Care Improves Efficiency, Performance The Importance of F&B to Leisure Travelers Lamps/Lighting Transactions Events Ad/Editorial Index Marketplace Classifieds Checking Out

Hotel & Motel Management - February 18, 2008

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