Northstar Acquires HotelsWorld

Jan 07, 2018

What:
Northstar Travel Group, parent company to TravelAge West, has acquired HotelsWorld, the leading suite of hotel industry events for senior hotel executives in the Australia and New Zealand region.

Why It Matters:
In May, Northstar acquired the portfolio of events comprising the Burba Hotel Network (BHN), the leading global producer of hotel investment conferences. Now, Northstar and BHN will be able to leverage their databases, relationships, media properties and domain expertise to help further grow HotelsWorld — which comprises four consecutive events held over three days in Sydney each July.

Fast Facts:
- HotelsWorld attracts more than 500 industry CEOs and other senior executives involved in the operation and ownership of hotels, resorts, serviced apartments and alternative forms of guest accommodation in the region.

- The HotelsWorld event will be operated in conjunction with Northstar’s other hospitality focused events, including The Americas Lodging Investment Summit (ALIS), which is the world’s largest hotel investment conference; Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific (HICAP) in Hong Kong, which is the largest hotel investment conference in Asia and one of the longest continuously running hotel investment conferences in the world; HICAP Update in Singapore; Alternative Ownership Conference – Asia Pacific (AOCAP) in Singapore; Hotel Investment Forum India (HIFI) in Mumbai, India; Caribbean Hotel and Resort Investment Summit (CHRIS) in Miami, Fla; the Hotel Opportunities Latin America (HOLA) conference in Miami; and Hotel Investment Conference Europe (Hot.E) in London.

- HotelsWorld is being sold by Hotels World Australia Pty Ltd., founded and owned by John Smith.

- Smith will continue to be involved in the organization and delivery of HotelsWorld under Northstar’s ownership. Ashurst, Australia’s leading legal firm, has co-hosted HotelsWorld since its inception and will continue to co-host the event in conjunction with BHN.

What They Are Saying:
“Northstar’s ownership of HotelsWorld is an exciting development in the growth of the event and is a further indication of the growing importance of hotels and hospitality in this region,” Smith said. “I am confident that its involvement will build on the momentum we have created and will take HotelsWorld to the next level.”

“We believe that the addition of HotelsWorld to BHN’s portfolio of global hotel investment conferences is an important step in building out the global leadership of BHN within the hotel investment industry,” said Tom Kemp, chairman and CEO of Northstar Travel Group. “The underlying growth of the Australian and New Zealand hotel, travel and tourism business is a strong driver in making this strategic investment.”

“We have enjoyed a long-standing relationship with John and have great respect for his leadership position in Australia and New Zealand hotel investment community,” said Jim Burba, founder and president of BHN. “The synergies between our existing portfolio of events in Asia and HotelsWorld are potentially enormous, and in combining efforts, we’ll finally be able to shine a proper spotlight on the opportunities in Australia and the Pacific.”