Hotel Professionals is celebrating its anniversary

This July Hotel Professionals marked its 5.5 year anniversary of presence on the market.

Hotel Professionals’ history dates back to 2014, when Alex Kloszewski together with his current team founded an independent hotel real estate advisory company and a year later as a response to the market’s demand Hotel Professionals Management Group (HPMG) was established to provide hotel operational management services.

During this period Hotel Professionals prepared over 275 feasibility studies, opinion of value and desktop study reports, annually conducted even up to 70 hotel property valuations, participated in the brand and operator search and acquisition process for 15 hotel projects, including took part in bringing 8 debuting brands in various segments and locations to the Polish market, such as Crowne Plaza (Warsaw Hub, Warsaw), NYX (Varso Place, Warsaw), Radisson RED (Unity Square, Kraków and Liberty Tower, Warsaw) or Autograph Collection Hotels (Branicki and Szaniawski Palace, Warsaw).

The Hotel Professionals team also assisted investors in negotiating three franchise agreements for the lifestyle Moxy brand, which is the fastest developing brand of the Marriott International chain in Poland, for projects: Moxy Katowice Airport, Moxy Warsaw Praga, as well as the Moxy project planned by Galeria Mokotów in Warsaw’s Mokotów district. In terms of the last mentioned development, the lifestyle economy hotel’s offer will be complemented with a hotel under the Residence Inn brand – another brand of the Marriott chain which will make its debut in Poland.

Hotel Professionals’ sister company – HPMG, has 960 rooms under management, both existing and under development. The company’s portfolio includes Moxy Warsaw Praga in the Centrum Praskie Koneser complex, as well as hotels and the Suntago Village part of the state-of-the-art Park of Poland recreational complex, which are currently under construction. Moreover, the company concluded an agreement for the management of the first Hyatt Place in Poland, which is under development in Kraków. In recent years HPMG prepared for opening and marketed two hotels part of the Hilton chain - Hampton by Hilton Gdańsk Oliwa and Hampton by Hilton Oświęcim. Additionally, currently HPMG provides operational advisory in the construction and pre-opening process for investors of projects such as Crowne Plaza & Holiday Inn Express part of the Warsaw Hub, the Radisson RED hotel in Warsaw as well as a globally branded hotel planned in Łódź – together ca. 1000 branded rooms.

Overview of the hotel market from a five years’ perspective

In 2014 only 3 hotels with a total of 800 rooms in the 3- and 4-star standards opened in Warsaw, and only a few branded hotels were under construction and planned. In comparison, in 2018 Warsaw’s hotel market grew by as much as 2000 hotel rooms and apartments delivered in 10 hotel and aparthotel properties positioned in the 3-, 4- and 5-star segments and by the end of the year there were close to 40 hotels and ca. 5000 hotel rooms in the investment pipeline.

Global hotel chains mark their presence not only in Warsaw and in the largest business markets (Kraków, Wrocław, Gdańsk) but have acknowledged the potential of regional cities and are beginning to enter resort locations at the Polish seaside and in mountain regions, what is exemplified by developments such as Radisson Blu Hotel & Residences opened this year in Zakopane, as well as MGallery by Sofitel in Jurata, Radisson Blu Mountain Resort in Szklarska Poręba, or Hilton Resort & Spa in Świnoujście, which are under construction.

In 2014 the Polish hotel market was in its initial stage of development, when it comes to cooperation with hotel chains based on franchise agreements. Currently, global hotel chains are developing and expanding their market presence in Poland via offering investors willing to acquire a renowned brand for their property cooperation based mainly on this form. Moreover, since 2017 a new appetite for projects based on a lease agreement has been visible, both from the investors’ as well as hotel chains’ side, what is a novelty on the Polish market.

In recent years chains have been addressing not only the needs of investors, but are also tailoring their offer to meet the needs of the new generation of hotel guests by creating whole new hotel brands and concepts across various segments. Since 2014 chains have launched brands such as, JO&JOE and Tribe – both lifestyles brands of Accor, upscale brand Curio – A Collection by Hilton and Motto by Hilton – Hilton’s new economy lifestyle brand or R.evo by Vienna House, which name stems from the word “revolution”. Projects under the Curio Collection by Hilton brand have been already announced in Poznań and Kraków, and when it comes to the remaining brands chains declare their full readiness to enter Poland’s market.

The dynamic development of the hotel market in Poland has contributed to the development of sectors related to typical hospitality. A growing number of projects are being developed in varied models, including dual branded properties with an extended-stay component, apartment buildings for short- and long-term rentals, hotels in the condo formula or private dormitories.

“Elevate ! - is our favorite expression, even our emotional approach to everything we do. We elevate our performance for our clients, our investors, our staff and our purveyors. Our goal is to become the premier most experienced hotel management company, with the support of Hotel Professionals Advisory. We never imagined the speed and quality of our growth, but this said, we know this is due to the high quality of our staff, and partners. We are preparing our expansion efforts for the next 5 years, keeping in mind, that only excellence will get us there…” – comments Alex Kloszewski, Managing Partner at Hotel Professionals & Hotel Professionals Management Group.