Last month the Managing Director of Round Hill Hotel & Villas, Josef Forstmayr, was officially announced as the President of the Caribbean Hotel and Tourist Association (CHTA). His tenure will be for two years and during that time Forstmayr will be aiming to institute some fundamental changes that will further enhance the Caribbean’s tourism product.

He is generally acknowledged as being the doyen of high-end tourism in Jamaica and his resume speaks to this fact.

He began his career in the fall of 1979 as Assistant Manager at Coconut Cove in Negril, later moving to the Tryall Golf and Beach Hotel as Resident Manager. He then moved to Trident Villas and Hotel in Port Antonio where he served as General Manager before settling at his present posting, the world-renowned Round Hill and Villas as Managing Director.

Josef Forstmayer is an Austrian who attended the University of Salzburg where he studied Economic Sciences and Tourism. He is fluent in four languages, namely German, English, French and Italian. In 2007 he was voted Caribbean Hotelier of the Year and was President of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) from June 2001 to 2003.

It would be remiss to countenance that Forstmayr’s area of expertise is confined solely to high -end hotels in Jamaica . He is very aware of tourism trends worldwide and more particularly the Caribbean, making him more than a worthy candidate for the position of President of the CHTA.

Tourism is a big economic driver for the Caribbean

The importance of tourism to Caribbean economies has been a constant clarion call for Forstmayr. Speaking with Caribbean Business Report from Round Hill last week he cited data from Oxford Economics which reveals that one in four jobs in Jamaica is in the tourism sector and in the Caribbean it is one in nine.

“In Jamaica tourism accounts for 27 per cent of the country’s total Gross Domestic Product (GDP) but if you count just hotels it comes to about 12 per cent. However, there is a lot to it and one cannot discount the linkages with the sector. The problem is many people grasp the data but cannot relate to it or apply it for that matter,” said the new President of the CTHA.

He bemoans the lack of serious interest shown in regional tourism at the recently concluded CARICOM Heads Summit which took place in Montego Bay. The Round Hill Managing Director saw it as a perfect opportunity for agreeing on a strategy to market the Caribbean as one of the best holiday destinations in the world. ” I cannot say it enough, in order to make an impact we have to give the Caribbean the required visibility. You cannot just say we have Jamaica, we have Barbados we have St Lucia.No . To be successful we need to have a regional vision. You have to bring people’s attention to the Caribbean. Once people see that we are working together and we are visible it will lead to better airlift. The more established tourism interests prefer to work with a unified established group rather than separate little islands and that makes sense. Here Jamaica can lead the charge because it is more committed and has more resources,” said Forstmayr.

Here he sees the value of Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett whom he commends for his industriousness and championing of the industry. He notes the minister’s positive and unrelenting approach to bringing heads to beds, particularly in the midst of a global recession. Forstmayr believes the Caribbean can learn from Bartlett’s efforts and approach.

He gave an example of Bartlett’s infectiousness:” “Back at the end of 2008, when the global financial crisis came to the fore, Jamaican tourism was forecasting a major downturn in arrivals. Every excuse in the book was provided as to why the winter season would be the worst ever. Bartlett said, ‘I’ve just come from Miami airport and it was packed so people are flying. However, they are not flying to Jamaica, this cannot be.’ Before you know it we have growth out of Canada, and we have more airlift to Jamaica. So you see ,it goes hand in hand. Bartlett was able to remove protection for our national carrier and get more carriers to come to Jamaica. To be honest, Air Jamaica was to some degree stifling our potential growth. We don’t want Air Jamaica to close down but at the same time we were holding off agreements with other airlines to protect Air Jamaica from competition. Today we have more airlift than we ever had before because we were able to soften our stance on Air Jamaica. The upshot of all this is that Jamaica has seen an increase in arrivals over the last two years where other Caribbean destinations have not.”

The Round Hill boss went on to say that both Bartlett and Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) head John Lynch took inordinate criticism for attempting to bring additional airlift to Jamaica at a time when the tourism product came under threat as a result of the global downturn. This, he declared, was unwarranted as the deal with American Airlines was necessary. ” You can’t just use a big stick every time. Sometimes you have to use a carrot. As long as you remain within the law then there should be no problem. It didn’t make sense to get caught up in procedural issues when you have to act quickly to protect the tourism product,” was how he put it.

Forstmayr is of the view that the team of Bartlett and Lynch are doing a good job and they now have to get Jamaica to take the lead in the Caribbean and ensure that the Caribbean Tourism Development Company (CTDC) receives some funding.

So what does he want to accomplish during his tenure as President of the CHTA?

“Firstly I want to strengthen the advocacy campaign, driving home the message just how important tourism is to Caribbean economies. Both the politicians and our people need to listen to the fact that tourism creates economic opportunities. The argument that 50 per cent of tourism earnings are exported is nonsense. Tourism surpasses all other forms of economic activity in the Caribbean. In Jamaica, Hopewell without tourism would be non-existent. Turn off tourism in Jamaica and see what happens. If you did that you would have a hue and cry. Tourism is vital to the Caribbean and I cannot stress that enough.

“With advocacy comes the need to empower the CTDC to become a real player in the market. Here we need to find funding one way or the other from the public sector. We have to create a branding and image campaign for the Caribbean. We have to create a demand in both the United States and Europe for the Caribbean. Now how do you do that? I am suggesting using food, flavours and spices.”

Caribbean food can attract visitors

The Caribbean is well known for its local produce, a fact that is not lost on Forstmayr. He believes you can tie the islands together by promoting its food, with each island showcasing its individual dishes. “Here Caribbean cuisine could become the next world cuisine. We love it so why shouldn’t everybody else love it? We can elevate and refine it very much like Novia McDonald Whyte has done with the Observer’s Food Awards. We can make it a truly world-class cuisine by employing a Taste of the Caribbean competition. By using food we can create real linkages with Caribbean agriculture which can only benefit the island economies. That’s where your instant political pay-off comes in. In Europe what do you think the largest budget is for? Agriculture. Food is the most emotive connection everybody has.”

The food angle ties into the supply side of tourism and the President of the CHTA is a big supporter of this approach. He lauds the effort by GraceKennedy Chief Operating Officer Don Wehby to put a task force in place to that end. Here he notes that the will to get this done must be demonstrated by both operators and producers. ” The Caribbean has good refined products and it is important that we give them prominence and exposure. Blue Mountain coffee, Appleton, Banks Beer, Red Stripe, Mount Gay Rum, Grace Foods should all be featured in our hotels. By focusing on these products you would be surprised how much demand can be created.”

Focusing on the supply side

There is a prevailing view that for the Caribbean to be successful it should concentrate mainly on exports. Forstmayr does not totally support that view.

“That’s the argument I am having with our ministers. We are so focused on exports when we can export to our own industries. This is where the supply side comes in. We need to also sell to our hotels. Jamaica’s Minister of Agriculture Christopher Tufton has been very good here and recognises the importance of the supply side of tourism. The potential that is there will make his life a lot easier and less stressful. Hoteliers really do favour local produce but it must be of a certain standard. The smaller islands may find it difficult to create the consumer demand because many of them have very small populations. However, the bigger territories, once they can service their home market, can then look to export to these other Caribbean islands. That’s why it is important to establish those linkages and once that is done tourism will get more support because it has the ability to stimulate economic activity. As President of the CHTA my rallying cry will be, “Let us showcase as much of Caribbean products as we can in our restaurants, hotels, guest houses and even on the cruise ships.”

He has appointed Kevin Kenny of Angostura as his vice president especially for the purpose of overseeing these linkages and to bring the Eastern Caribbean into the mix. He will also look to lobby Caribbean constituents ensuring they get the message.

The Spanish hotels

Forstmayr drew attention to the fact that the large Spanish hotels operating in the Caribbean are not members of the CHTA and this he finds disturbing. He has set himself the challenge of ensuring that this happens during his tenure. He says he understands some of their reasons for remaining reticent on this issue.

“They remain somewhat outside the fray largely because of their size. Also they don’t see any direct benefit from joining us. This is how it works: First you have to be a member of your local hotel association and then you can become a member of CHTA. In Jamaica all our Spanish hotels are members of JHTA. We worked very hard to get them to join JHTA, cajoling and pressuring them and in the end they came to the table. RIU was particularly difficult to convince but under my tenure as President of JHTA we managed to pull it off. The Spanish hoteliers are very proud and they all belong to the Majorca Hotel Association and so know each other well . Today they all see the benefit of belonging to the JHTA. Wayne Cummings (the present President of the JHTA) was spectacular in negotiating tax concessions in anticipation of the recession and they were grateful. Now I have to make them see the benefits of joining the Caribbean arm. We are offering them a seat on the Board of Directors and a host of other reasons why it is in their interests to join the CHTA. It is very important that they see themselves as part of the Caribbean and become a part of its destiny and well-being. We want to create better social harmony and create an atmosphere of acceptance with them. We would like to see them in the role of good corporate citizens in the Caribbean.”

Is the all-inclusive concept old hat now?

There is a school of thought that the all-inclusive hotel concept that proliferates in the Caribbean is now a tired model which prevents a trickle-down effect of the tourism dollar. Some say there are too many of these hotels and that the Caribbean now needs a more diversified product. Forstmayr’s answer is that supply and demand is the determining regulator.

” For us to say we should have a better balance is justified. I have always felt that we should have more European Plan (EP ) hotels. But the problem there is that we could not attract the EPs because of the crime situation. During the eighties we then started selling off our EP hotels because they were going bankrupt and the only people who bought them were Jamaican tycoons. What we need is for foreign investors to spend their money in the Caribbean. For a long time no one wanted to come to the Caribbean until the Spanish came to Jamaica They saw the all-inclusive concept working well , they also saw the high margins that Sandals was making. Issa may well have had the idea, but it was Butch Stewart who perfected it and created a demand that just blew away the competition. To be honest with you, I didn’t think it would last this long. The Sandals product is very competitive and is of a very high standard. Butch Stewart has invested to such a degree that he has taken the brand to a level way beyond the Spanish hotels to the extent that he doesn’t have to fear them.

“It has to be said that the Spanish hotels have made more money in Jamaica than in other Caribbean islands Why? Because the margins and rates are good for the all-inclusive product here.”

The Round Hill managing director pointed out that it is a different story for the EP hotels. He said that for Round Hill he can charge US$700 a night whereas in Barbados they charge US$1,200 a night. In other words, he is suffering whereas the all-inclusives are doing well.

“I think the all-inclusives will do even better next year. They will help to push Jamaica into a demand -driven destination which will be great but unrealistic. Why? Because we have crime. No one talks about why it is that we don’t have the Four Seasons and other branded boutique EP hotels in Jamaica. The reason is because they associate us with heinous crimes and that’s what we have to suffer through. That is why our real estate is still affordable in Jamaica whereas you can’t afford it in the Bahamas or Barbados. Is it always going to remain that way? I don’t think so. Once we get Harmony Cove off the ground that will be a positive development that will show people that Jamaica is a good place to invest in. The Spanish showed us all that you can build large all-inclusive hotels in Jamaica that can make money from the North American market. Harmony Cove may do the same thing with yachting, casinos and golf.”

He went on to say that it is a romantic view to have the right mix of boutique hotels, all-inclusives and EPs, but he came to Jamaica thirty years ago and it didn’t exist then and it doesn’t exist now except in some people’s imagination.

The Tivoli situation

The disturbances in West Kingston that saw over seventy people slain in Tivoli Gardens at the end of May of this year undoubtedly hurt the Jamaican tourism product. According to Forstmayr it has taken a good sheen off an already lethargic summer, killing off some sound initiatives put in place for June and July. He perspicaciously observes that back in 2001, disturbances again in Tivoli Gardens set back Jamaican tourism taking it a decade to regain its confidence involving much hard work, only to have it reversed ten years later by another shoot-out in Tivoli bringing unwanted attention to the country and scaring away visitor traffic.

“Tivoli was on all the headlines. I got calls from all around the world and once again all the negatives were brought to everyone’s attention and the thing is you can’t counter it on a PR front because you can’t declare it’s not so bad while it is there on the television screens and in the newspapers. Furthermore, by dismissing it you incur the wrath of the journalists but the fact remains Jamaica’s crime is unacceptable.. This Tivoli situation means that we have to start again from scratch.”

Can the Caribbean be marketed as one destination?

St Lucia’s Minister of Tourism Allen Chastanet has advocated a more integrated approach to Caribbean tourism with emphasis placed on a regional marketing strategy. Does Forstmayr think this can work?

” Well, I am very passionate about Jamaica and know its product very well. Needless to say I want to see it succeed. I recognise that we do need to present a bigger picture to our main audience out there because by and large people have bad geography knowledge. Nevertheless, we need to create demand for the region in order to create better airlift and establish hubs. The only way to do that is by creating a strong brand. If someone says Montseratt to you, you don’t know what the heck they are talking about.

“Now if I am part of a region that is considered the most desirable, the most beautiful that has the most interesting people and has enticing food and wonderful experiences, then I can sell what I have so much better under that umbrella . Now that doesn’t mean I must stop being Jamaica and wind down the Jamaica Tourist Board. Now if I can have a big umbrella over me that brands me as the Caribbean, the most desirable warm weather destination for North America or Europe, then I stand a much better chance of attracting tourists.”

The threat that is Cuba

Cuba is ramping up its tourism product and many industry observers and players are of the opinion that when it opens up, it will be the jewel in the crown of Caribbean tourism, pulling market share away from other destinations. Already it is constructing a number of hotels and is putting in place golf courses in anticipation of high demand. According to data supplied by its Statistics National Office in 2009, Cuba received 2.5 million visitors, a 3.5 per cent increase over 2008, but the revenues showed a US$148 million decline, mainly due to the US dollar weakness. What does the new President of the CHTA make of Cuba, and is it indeed a threat?

“Anything that big is a threat. I would love to see it open up sooner than later. I am not a big fan of the Communist system, particularly coming from a western European country surrounded by them. My antipathy is not from a philosophical point of view because I can live with socialism once everyone is treated equally.My problem is you do have a two-tiered society in that you have people who can pay for everything with foreign exchange and the people who live and work there who have very little. To me that is just wrong. The people love Fidel (Castro) and that’s OK . However, inevitably Cuba will have to eventually deal with all its inequalities as we have to. That is why I want to see communism stop there sooner rather than later.

“I think people will initially go there because they are curious, but that can benefit us because Cuba can then become a stepping stone to the rest of the Caribbean. On the flip side it can turn out to be a deterrent to business for us and then it becomes a challenge. It is a two-edged sword but ultimately with 10 million people hungry for consumption, the opportunities are massive.”

Forstmayr sees Cuba building up both its European and Canadian business but not its United States business if it doesn’t change radically. Also he says Americans are lazy when it comes to language and will steer clear of a Spanish- speaking destination in that regard. “I don’t think that Cuba will pose a significant threat to other Caribbean destinations, but it will provide some competition..