A Q&A with Accor's Camil Yazbeck

Camil Yazbeck, Senior Vice President, Head of Development Northern Europe, Accor joined us at The Annual Hotel Conference after his session “Pivot! Rethinking Business Models and Growth Strategies” 

How did it feel to be back here at The AHC? 

“It feels absolutely great. I think the key point here is that we're connecting with partners again that we haven't seen for a while, which is brilliant and being one team together, seeing people and understanding their needs. We have all had a lot of Teams calls and everything throughout the pandemic, it’s great that technology is there, but technology doesn't replace face to face meetings. And I feel like three meetings on Teams are worth one meeting in person. So that's how important this is for us. 

Do you think owners will continue to see opportunities in hotel investments under your brands and franchises? Do you predict signings and openings to continue to grow for Accor in Europe?
“In 2020, we had the second-best year ever in signings for Accor. We signed 18,500 rooms just in Europe alone. And that is a testament to our partners, the owners, the management companies, third party because we manage and franchise, depending on the region and where we are. And they love hotels as an asset class and that will continue to grow. So we have a lot. We've had many amazing openings, including the Fairmont, Windsor park, Carlton House Fairmont Managed Hotel in Dublin. We have the Ago platform in the U.K. I'm talking specifically in the UK since we are based in the UK, but also very soon the Raffles at the Old War Office, which is which is an amazing hotel, and it also has branded residential.”

Where do you see opportunities coming out of crisis?

“I believe that will continue especially in Western Europe with conversion brands. So, a lot of independent owners want to join the system. They want to have access to the distribution that would bring them to Accor limitless our 70 million member’s bases. We see a lot in Eastern Europe also, especially on the resort side, and we're opening quite a lot of Mövenpick hotels there and Pullman's and Russia. And we have quite a lot of ground up developments. So, a lot of opportunities for those who want to venture over there, but a lot of existing opportunities within all the DACH regions and the UK and Ireland. And I firmly believe a lot in the UK and I think it bounces back very, very quickly and it comes back much better and stronger afterwards.”

Is there anything causing you concern right now?
“I think on the panel just now, also a lot of discussions were on labour, but I'm very pleased to say the heart of hospitality that that Accor has pioneered and just launched a month ago has been very, very successful. It talks about how important the job of being in a hotel. All the experiences, the entrepreneurship, the creativity of people who choose to be in hotels. And we're selling to team members who want to join us or telling them how important it is by the fact that sharing the experiences and the life of the people who work in the hospitality industry, sharing their passion, their creativity, they can bounce back out of any crisis.”

Will you be looking to acquire in the coming months?

“We have all the tools needed to bring to every investor what is needed, whether they are core plus or core or private equity or family offices, and to diversify their risk throughout the investment.”

What trends do you think will continue into 2022? 
“First and foremost is ESG. We have a CEO specifically dedicated to CSR sustainability and ESG.
This is how important this is for us. We are part of the COP26 and we will continue to educate our partners, our guests, our employees to make sure that whatever we open, we and develop, we do it in a sustainable fashion. Because also for owners, this is going to compress the cap rates for them and make it an even better investment. There will be a lot of, I believe, focus on deal structures, which we haven't seen before, and I think owners are very creative now. They think outside the box and we help them along the way to make sure that they have the right investment and product, in the right place, and the right deal structure for what they want to achieve in the future. I think another trend that is going to be prominent is mixed use, and there's a lot of buildings out there which are which could be amazing hotels, but at the same time an amazing ecosystem. And you can put one brand or dual branded hotels, and the same time co-working, and then you add the brand the residential element to it as well. Once you can add extended stay, which goes well with what the customers looking for now, going back to the ESG point, where they will come, and they will stay on the longer side of things. So, they will come for business, but they want to also stay a little bit longer and will mix leisure with their stay. You could add wellness as well, which is important, and we have the expertise in that. We have and we are opening all these hotels in these areas as such following these trends.