More than 30 thousand visitors, 150 international buyers and important business closures were some of the results left by Expo Cotelco 2010, in Bogotá, Colombia.By: Duván Chaverra Agudelo
Expo Cotelco 2010 bet on innovation and the presentation of new sectors that sought to join the hotel industry. The fair, which was held last June in the Colombian capital, Bogotá, left the organizers and the specialized public that attended in greater numbers this year quite satisfied.
HOTEL MANAGEMENT visited during the five days of the fair, where he toured each of the corridors and met the stands that were present at the event, which received more than 30 thousand professional visitors, registered around 60 million dollars in business, increased participation by 30% compared to 2009 and was attended by 150 international buyers.
During our tour we were able to verify the variety of suppliers that are betting on the industry, since they see a key business opportunity for business success. We observe some stands based on the theme of sustainability, energy saving, LED lighting, among other products that already have the right technology to work at this time when one of the slogans is to be eco-efficient.
The fair also had many companies designing different types of accessories, furniture for hotels, based mainly on environmentally friendly products, in addition to the machinery exhibited in the show was made in the same enclosure called Alimentec 2010, where the suppliers of machinery for the hotel in areas such as the kitchen and laundries were located, chiefly.
Throughout the show we talked with some of the suppliers to give us a balance on what the fair meant for their companies, we also had the opportunity to interview the president of the Hotel Association of Colombia (Cotelco), Jaime Alberto Cabal, who gave us the satisfaction of the duty fulfilled once the event was over.
"The fair left a very positive balance because it was completely renewed with a large number of suppliers who had not participated in previous years and who arrived with very new topics for the hotel industry, such as environmental management and energy saving, we also have enough technology associated with hotel and tourism activity; we had more than 2,800 square meters of exhibition. Additionally we had a good number of conferences that served to update a little the global trends in this sector.
Exhibitors
Despite the small influx of public that was presented during the first two days, the fair recovered for the remaining three days, when visitors arrived to look for the most appropriate when it comes to meeting the needs of their hotel or restaurant.
We spoke with engineer Juan Carlos Otoya, from Zeus Technology, who took stock of the fair: "For us it was very positive because we managed to close a business for a 65-room hotel and that is a success, since normally in fairs like this one needs a couple of months to close an agreement"
The company that develops software for hotels explained what the hotelier is currently looking for in this type of products: "It is looking for a system that allows people to enter it via the Internet and that electronic payments can be made online, hoteliers who are in the administrative branches come to look for integration in the products and thus avoid doing second jobs typing information in the accounting and inventory systems."
For his part, Andrés Contreras, from the marketing area of Rubbermaid Comercial, commented on the firm's participation in Expo Cotelco that "finally a very successful audience came, all the visitors who attended were related to the hotel segment. We explore that many of our products do not know them, although the portfolio and the brand is recognized, we found an opportunity to talk about our products and we consider that the database allows us to expand our market."
On the products offered by the brand, Andrés Contreras said that "within the five categories that we handle, the issue of toilet carts always stands out, those of hospitality have a great weight for the specifications they handle, the issue of recycling also caught the attention and finally people found a surprise with the issue of food that was very innovative. "
The representative of Rubbermaid indicated that both the fair and the emergence of new hotels have allowed the brand to improve its market penetration: "Our budgets have been fulfilling magnificently and we believe that this fair will boost the growth of the company in the sector, in addition the hotel industry has been growing and we have learned of openings of new hotels, which benefits the company."
Another of the companies that was present at the fair was Challenger, which as a novelty presented its furniture area for hotels and restaurants. Ángelica Morales, director of the institutional division, said about the experience at the fair that "we have had a good acceptance, we have been visited by very important clients, we have consolidated good business that we have already been working on and that we are closing in this fair, and that is the objective of working at Cotelco".
The common denominator for the companies at the fair was the satisfaction of having closed business, although we also met points of view of exhibitors who did not feel quite good with the organization of Expo Cotelco, arguing shortage of specialized visitors, a reduction in the size of the event compared to the one held in 2008 and perhaps a very extensive fair in days. However, there is no doubt that these exhibitions in Colombia, and especially in Latin America, drive the industry to continue growing.
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Year of recovery in Colombia
We took advantage of Jaime Alberto Cabal, president of the Hotel Association of Colombia (Cotelco), to consult him about the current situation of the industry in that country. In this regard, he said: "The year 2010 has marked a slight recovery compared to 2009. In terms of occupancy we are three percentage points above what we registered in April of the previous year, the arrival of international tourists is registering about 6%, investment continues to grow close to 25%, this means that the sector has passed these moments of crisis, but without ignoring that in Colombia there is greater competition and more supply of rooms but continues to set a very important pattern in Latin America and growing above average in the region."
Cabal assures that at the moment Colombia is prepared to receive the large hotel chains of the world, thanks to the good performance of the sector, which has generated a greater offer of rooms but that has not prevented that country from continuing to grow.
"Colombia is one of the countries where there is more foreign investment in all of Latin America, because there is greater confidence in the investment sector in such a way that the country is prepared to continue with the process of international chains."
Finally, the leader mentioned that he continues in his struggle to reduce informal hotels in order for the State to improve its control mechanisms.
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