#TIF18 | A cross examination of hospitality investment: What strategy? Which objectives? What priorities? Why?

What does it take for a union between NH Hotel Group and Minor International to be a success?

Hugo ROVIRA, CEO Division Southern Europe, NH Hotel Group: "I think that for any process of this nature, what is important and what is not always easy is to avoid overlapping or superposition, and to seek complementarity. Both around the territories you will cover (in terms of countries and continents), but also regarding brands. The brands risk trampling one another, it's not easy. But also, the resort cycle is not always the same as the urban cycle. The client must understand what the merger is about and what is good for them. Complementarity is good for customers and investors."

Is it something that is part of a hotel takeover? What is and isn't included?

Dominique OZANNE, Deputy CEO, Covivio: "When you do a takeover, everyone at the shareholder level must be well aligned. It is essential to be totally in line about what will be done at the hotel with the operator. In other words, to create a real convergence of interests with the operator. This convergence can be the result of a contract with variable rent on turnover, or a contract with a rent that is variable on the NOI (Net Operating Income NDR). But it can also come through cross-shareholdings, with an operator that will take 5, 10, 15, 15, 20, 30% of an acquisition to ensure that the alignment of interest is complete."

What things need to be taken into consideration during this type of operation?

Gianluca CALISTI, Legal partner, Dentons: "Yes, I see a lot. Alignment of interests in fiscal matters is essential as you have investors and operators. And all these people, from a tax perspective, have different strategies because they have different tax systems. They also have regulatory...