Cimex Plans to Invest 2 Billion CZK into Buying Hotels

Date: 26.9.2008

The Cimex Group is going to invest about 2 billion CZK into purchase of new hotels. Thus it wants to strengthen its position of the largest Czech hotel owner at a time when hotel business goes through hard times, the number of guests is low and the owners are constantly forced to cut down prices.

“We are convinced that this setback period is suitable for purchases,” says Miroslav Příkop, Cimex Invest Chairman of the Board of Directors. He bases his statement on an analysis conducted by Armando Hospitality Group to prepare the Orea Hotels – a filial company of Cimex – for expansion.

“All the worldwide hotel chains, such as Marriott and Hilton, grew very quickly in periods of decrease when the hotel business, and economics as a whole, was experiencing severe problems. For strong and healthy investors it is a wonderful opportunity to buy,” states Jerry Pribil, President of Armando.

According to him, the Czech Republic is connected to the global market tightly enough to enable to predict the development of Czech market. The decrease in hotel business will probably take five more years as the market has not yet reached the bottom, says Pribil. Cimex owns two dozens of hotels all over the Czech Republic, with total capacity of about six thousand beds. Among the best known are the Pyramida in Prague, the Voroněž in Brno and the Horal in Špindlerův Mlýn.

Source: Hospodářské noviny
By: Vladimír Kaláb