workV-CovOct09b-sa-rb-JP:Layout 1 16/11/09 12:50 Page 3

Behzat Aksaray: ‘Condo-hotels Diane Clarkson: Robin Barrasford: ‘Fractional

and multi-use properties are ‘Customer intelligence ownership opens up the
becoming very popular in is only useful if it is target market for luxury
Turkey.’ PAGE 12 acted upon.’ PAGE 36 resorts.’ PAGE 27

VENTURES
Enterprising ideas for the vacation industry

SILVER SERVICE
November 2009

CLUB LA COSTA
RESORTS & HOTELS
CELEBRATES 25
GOLDEN YEARS

HOT PROPERTY
CROATIA IS A LAND
OF OPPORTUNITY

TURKEY
THE RISING STAR
A WEALTH OF ATTRACTIONS AND
GOVERNMENT SUPPORT MEANS
TURKEY IS FINALLY READY TO
REALISE ITS INTERNATIONAL
TOURISM POTENTIAL

CREDIT WORTHY
TIMESHARE ASSOCIATION HELPS
BUILD INDUSTRY’S REPUTATION

FRACTIONAL PHILOSOPHY
PROPERTY AGENT DEVELOPS
FIRST RESORT IN GREECE
Diversified fixer:Layout 4 23/6/09 14:17 Page 1
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VENTURES MAGAZINE SERVING RCI’S MARKETS IN EUROPE,

NOVEMBER 2009 THE MIDDLE EAST, AFRICA AND INDIA

CONTENTS EDITORIAL

4 MARKET OUTLOOK: 2009 has been a year of achievement

A news and views round-up for RCI and its industry associates.
from Europe, and around the The last 12 months have left me
world feeling proud to be a part of an
industry that is consistently proactive
10 RDO NEWS: and enthusiastic in identifying
A year of change and positive opportunities to build a bright future.
action against rogue traders Our developers’ commitment to
for the Resort Development the long-term future of our industry is evident in the 35 new
Organisation properties we have signed to our exchange holiday networks in
the EMEAI region this year. We’re thrilled to welcome resorts
12 COVER STORY offering a great diversity of location and experiences, from
TURKEY – A RISING yacht clubs in the Mediterranean and spas in Turkey to
STAR: houseboats in Venice. A selection of these newly-affiliated
Turkey has all the attributes to become properties are showcased on page 8.
a major player in international vacation ownership The cover story on page 12 highlights the strengths of
Turkey as an increasingly important market for the shared-
16 ON COURSE FOR CHARITY: ownership product and for RCI, having affiliated six new
European executives and colleagues tee off at the Christel House Open Turkish resorts this year. Croatia is also tipped as a hot spot for
future resort development in our market report on page 22.
18 SIMPLY GIVING: Throughout 2009 I felt there has been a coming together of
Resort Properties’ latest development project will aid orphans in Kenya industry players across Europe and other regions, fostering a
genuine team spirit which can only serve to strengthen our
20 TURNING SILVER TO GOLD: business. There are updates on the important work of several
Club La Costa Resorts & Hotels Group goes from strength to strength of our associates in this issue – see pages 10-11 for a round-up
after 25 years in the business of the achievements of RDO and its enforcement programme
headed by Alberto Garcia, and page 30 for news of TATOC’s
24 A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE: achievements throughout this year.
How luxurious new resorts are changing the face of the Costa del Sol It has been a particularly good year for the fractional
product in Europe. The value proposition of fractional
27 PHILOSOPHY FOR SUCCESS: properties has made them an attractive leisure property
A UK-based property agent is going Greek to develop its first resort purchase for those with spending power during the credit
crunch and consequently we’ve seen an increase in market
30 A CREDIT TO THE INDUSTRY: activity. The Registry Collection affiliated six European
Chief executive Harry Taylor reflects on a busy year for The Timeshare properties in the last 12 months.
Association Increasingly property professionals from the wholly-owned
residential sector are entering the fractional arena –
32 LONG-TERM PROMISE: companies such as international property agents Barrasford &
Why Croatia is a market with real potential for property development Bird Worldwide whose new fractional property, Halcyon Hills in
Greece, is featured on page 27. The Registry Collection was
36 IN PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS: also invited to fill speaker slots at three prestigious property
How and why you should reap the rewards of customer satisfaction shows and won the Best Fractional Service Award at the 2009
Overseas Property Professional Industry Awards – see pages
38 FINAL CALL – TAKING CONTROL: 4, 6 and 7 for more details.
Survive tough economic times by making bold decisions, says LINDA We’ve certainly had much to celebrate in 2009 and I’d like to
FREER, managing director of Resort Solutions thank our affiliated developers and associates for their
continued loyalty to RCI. The RCI team greatly values those
relationships and we look forward to working with our
developers and business associates towards a shared goal of
VENTURES is published by RCI, a trading name of RCI Europe, Kettering Parkway, Kettering, Northants, NN15 growing all our businesses further in 2010.
6EY, United Kingdom. Tel: +44 (0)1536 310101. Fax: +44 (0)1536 314682. Email: ventures@europe.rci.com EDITOR:
Helen Foster. CONTRIBUTING EDITOR: Steve Adams. DESIGN: Richard Blaney. PRODUCTION CO-ORDINATOR:
Claire Williams. ADVERTISING SALES: Media Line Ltd. Tel: +44 (0)870 250 8701. Repro: JP Repro. PRINTING:
CKN Print Ltd. Original articles and contributions may be reproduced or transmitted only with written permission
Sincerely
from the publisher. No responsibility is accepted by RCI Europe for any losses or other consequences resulting Jonathan Back
from advertisements or other material appearing in this publication. RCI Europe reserves the right to accept or
refuse advertisements at its discretion without assigning any reason for doing so. © RCI Europe 2009. Managing director, RCI EMEAI

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RCI Ventures, November 2009 3
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Marketoutlook
A R O U ND - U P OF I ND U S T R Y N E W S , V I EW S , A ND P E O P L E T O W ATC H

NEW APPOINTMENT
THE REGISTRY COLLECTION WINS
STRENGTHENS PRESTIGIOUS OPP INDUSTRY AWARD
HUTCHINSON AND INDUSTRY: The Registry buyer and its growing
CITADEL TEAM Collection programme, specialist knowledge
the world’s largest luxury creates value for a wide
PEOPLE: Hutchinson & Co Trust Company exchange programme, variety of developers.”
and Citadel Trustees have appointed has been honoured with Nick Turner, head
Veranne Wilkinson, below, as managing the 2009 Overseas and VP, business
director of both firms as well as all their Property Professional development, The
other European Group companies. (OPP) Industry Award in Registry Collection,
Wilkinson, the Best Fractional Europe, said: “We’re
who has been Service category. delighted to have our
with the firm The Registry efforts in helping
since 1996, Collection pioneered the developers to grow their
was born and luxury leisure property businesses, and the
educated in exchange concept when it fractional industry as a
France where launched in the US eight whole, recognised by an
she graduated years ago and now has organisation of OPP’s
from the more than 130 affiliates standing. We’d like to
Université de and 160 associated thank the OPP team for its
Franche- properties across five contribution to the
Comté with a continents in its portfolio. fractional industry by
Masters During the last 12 months embracing and supporting
Degree in its European business it so well across all its
Modern Languages and Business. development team has media channels.
Chairman Peter Hutchinson said: affiliated six new resorts Nick Turner “I’d also like to thank
“Veranne’s vast experience in providing our in Italy, France, Spain, Realtors were among the our affiliates and industry
ever extending services to the timeshare Greece and Tunisia. judges, who said of The associates who are all
industry and beyond will stand her in good Representatives from Registry Collection: “The very much a part of the
stead to move the Group forward with ICREA, AIPP, NAEA size, scale and expertise team that made winning
greater emphasis on financial products, International and the of this international this prestigious award
including Unregulated Collective Florida Association of company protects the possible.”
Investment Schemes, which Citadel has
recently been authorised to operate by the
Financial Services Authority.”
GUESTS HAPPIER WITH EUROPEAN HOTELS
In a separate development, Paul INDUSTRY: Overall hotel guest satisfaction in Europe reached a five-year high in 2009,
Smythe will be reducing his activities as increasing dramatically over 2008 with improvements in all ranked hospitality brands
he moves towards semi-retirement, but and across all segments, according to the JD Power and Associates 2009 European
will remain involved in the Group’s Hotel Guest Satisfaction Index Study.
expansion in the Far East, in his role as The study examined the overall satisfaction of European hotel guests based on
managing director, Asia. The Board will seven measures – costs and fees, guest room, hotel facilities, food and beverage,
be further strengthened by the addition check-in/check-out, hotel services and reservations. Forty-two hotel brands were
of Anna Rickard as legal services measured and ranked in four segments: upper upscale, upscale, mid-scale full service
director, Raquel Gonzalez as operations and economy.
director and Chris Allen as sales & The study found that hotel guest satisfaction had improved on 2008 by 16 index
marketing director. points or more (on a 1,000-point scale) in all four segments, with the greatest rises in
upper upscale and upscale, which increased by 24 and 25 points respectively over 2008.
■ To read an exclusive interview with Michael Drago, director of the global hospitality and travel practice at JD Power and
Veranne Wilkinson, visit Associates, said: “Hotels throughout Europe have not lost their customer focus despite
www.rciventures.com an economic climate that has reduced demand and forced hotel brands to stringently
contain costs.”

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4 RCI Ventures, November 2009
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FAMILIAR FACE RETURNS TO PESTANA

PEOPLE: José Rodrigues has
been appointed group sales
director of Pestana Vacation
Club, with responsibility for the
company’s resorts in Madeira
and the Algarve.
The move signals the start
of the Madeira national’s
second spell with the Pestana
Group, having been a sales
consultant with the company
from 1988 to 1996. During his
time away he has developed a
José Rodrigues wealth of hospitality industry
experience, working for
Marriott Vacation Club in
Marbella, and Starwood
Vacation Club in Cancun,
Mexico, where he was a senior
manager with responsibility for
sales and marketing.
Peter Booth, Pestana Group
managing director, said: “We’re
delighted to have José back. He
worked for Pestana up to 1996,
when he left his native Madeira
to take up the challenge of
going overseas to work for
several international hospitality
brands.
“After 12 years away he’s
returning to us with much
international experience and
fresh thinking to bring to each
part of our business. 2010 is
our 25th anniversary year and a
good time to fine tune our
business.”
Pestana Vacation Club
operates 16 resorts in Madeira,
Portugal and Brazil, and is
affiliated to RCI.

RSL TO MANAGE MONTE CARVOEIRO

RESORT: UK-based resort management company Resort Solutions Limited (RSL) has
signed a new management contract with Monte Carvoeiro in Lagoa in the Algarve.
The RCI-affiliated development, which comprises a mix of apartments and villas on
a hill above the bay of Carvoeiro, joins the 13 other resorts managed by RSL, one of the
largest independent management companies specialising in timeshare resorts. The
company, headed by managing director Linda Freer, is working with Monte Carvoeiro’s
owners’ committee to implement a number of operational changes to boost the
resort’s efficiency, with ongoing plans to upgrade its units and facilities.
The refurbishment of a two-bedroom show apartment was completed in
October 2009.
Ms Freer said: “We have already put a number of changes in place and are
The sales team at Monte Carvoeiro, from left, Murray
working closely with the new owners’ committee who are committed to restoring the
and Jocelyn Nichol with Lisa and Paul Salih.
resort to its former glory through an extensive programme of refurbishment.”
A newly-formed sales company, Vacations For You, headed by Murray and Jocelyn Nichol and Paul and Lisa Salih, joined RSL in October
and will be actively selling the resort.
■ To read Linda Freer’s views on taking control in a tough economic climate see Final Call on Page 38.

GOTIMESHARE.ORG MAKES GOOGLE NEWS

INDUSTRY: The Resort
Development Organisation
(RDO) is succeeding in its
strategy to counter negative
information on the internet by
getting its consumer website,
www.gotimeshare.org,
accredited as a source site by
Google for inclusion into
Google News.
Google’s strict selection
criteria is reported to admit
only 4,500 websites to its
worldwide source list. Tim
Kirby, the search engine
optimisation (SEO) specialist
managing the site said:
“When people do a search,
Google gives some added
weight to sites that are listed
in Google News which boosts
our rankings on internet
searches about timeshare and
related terms.”
Shortly after inclusion in
Google News, visits to the site
increased by 90 per cent.
Articles published on the site
are supplied by site sponsors
and will now be considered for
the Google News feed,
meaning they could be
syndicated to thousands of
news gathering agencies
worldwide, driving traffic both
to the site and associated links.
“This is a great opportunity
for sponsors,” added Kirby.
“Not all the articles submitted
will be syndicated but if the
content is original and topical
they have a good chance of
Google selection for syndication,
giving sponsors the benefit of
having a much better online
exposure worldwide.”
Any RDO members
interested in discussing
sponsorship opportunities on
www.gotimeshare.org should
contact Sue McNicol at
smcnicol@btinternet.com.

RCI Ventures, November 2009 5 |

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Marketoutlook: Events
A R O U ND - U P OF I ND U S T R Y N E W S , V I EW S , A ND P E O P L E T O W ATC H

FRACTIONAL SPOTLIGHT AT MAJOR PROPERTY SHOW

For the first time, fractional products became a major feature at The
Property Investor Show & OPPLive event in London. HELEN FOSTER
reports.

ractionals were definitely on the agenda

F at The Property Investor Show &
OPPLive event held at the Excel Centre in
London in October. A number of exhibitors
were real estate developers who had recently
introduced fractionals to their portfolios, and
the event featured a dedicated fractional
theatre in which panel sessions and
workshops were held.
The Registry Collection was a headline
sponsor of the event and was represented
with both a stand presence and in three
theatre sessions in which Nick Turner and
Paul Mac Sherry of The Registry Collection,
Europe, participated. Turner, head and VP of
the The Registry Collection, Europe, said:
“The fact that mainstream property
professionals such as the Overseas Property
Professional (OPP) group are bringing
fractionals into their publications and events
is a testament to the viability and strength of
the product in the leisure property market.”
MASS MARKET OPORTUNITIES
‘Is fractional a mass-market product?’ was
one of the liveliest of the show’s fractional
panel sessions.
Robin Barrasford of international property
agents Barrasford & Bird Worldwide, who
has just entered the fractional market with a
mid-priced development (£20,000) in Greece
which is affiliated to The Registry Collection,
said: “Fractional is another weapon in my
armoury. It opens up the overseas property
market to a vast number of people who
couldn’t afford it.
“That man can now afford a luxury villa
on the beach with an infinity pool and that’s
what it’s about. The Registry Collection is a
very sexy product – it makes my product look
sexier. It’s all about living the dream, not
calculators. I build properties and I sell
dreams.”
No matter how great the property or
The Registry Collection stand at the OPPLive Show. From left, Kelly Render and
Paul Mac Sherry of The Registry Collection with a visitor and Nick Turner.
concept, it needs a route to market and the
session identified property sales agents as
being essential in reaching the wider mid-
market consumer base.
Paul Anderson of model providers
Fractions Abroad said: “A good agent will be
able to qualify a client and understand what
they need. But this industry is very bad at
matching products to buyers. If a customer
doesn’t match your price range or is
mortgage-dependent and you can’t help
them, they could walk out the door. You’ve
got a motivated buyer so you’ve got to meet
their needs.”
The value add of an agent’s services was
not disputed, but the fee level was. Anderson
said agents must be compensated and
thought developers should make an
allocation out of profit to pay agent fees, “as
the client needs to buy at value”.
Delegates heard some agents were
reported to be loading the selling price by
more than 40 per cent to cover costs and
make profit. “This is what is going to kill this
industry. It’s just greed”, said Barrasford. “I
sell 12th shares and people can see what
you’re loading onto the price by doing the
maths. I think no more than a 20 per cent
uplift as a maximum.”
Anderson explained that agents will not
want to sell fractions if they’re too small: “They
do not have the desire to sell high multiple
shares because the income is too small for the
work involved. If you expect your agents to
work 12 times as hard to sell 12 fractions
instead of one whole ownership property, you
have to compensate them sufficiently.”
US property lawyer Andy Sirkin said
industry education was fundamental but
“educating brokers is a long-term process
involving intensive training”. He added that in
most cases agents were better as introducers.
“Getting fractional ownership to market
through the mainstream broker community
is a huge step,” he said. “Local agents can
work well as a referral network. They don’t
complete the sale but pass the leads on to
your in-house sales team. The leads they
pass on can be tracked so the local agent
doesn’t feel his sales are being hijacked.”

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6 RCI Ventures, November 2009
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HELEN FOSTER
reports on the third
Fractional Life Expo.
FRACTIONAL
SHOWCASE
espite the autumn showers,
D hundreds of visitors made
their way to the Fractional Life
Expo 2009 held at London’s
Broadgate Event Venues in
September to learn more about
the fractional product.
Piers Brown, founder of
Fractional Life and event
organiser, said it was difficult to
give an accurate figure on foot
fall to the event but somewhere
in the region of 8,000 show
guides had been given out
during the three-day event.
The show featured car clubs
and fine wines, though property
was its main focus.
Promotional investment on
behalf of its 16 exhibitors –
including the leading brands of
47 Park Street, Yoo Phuket,
K Club, Oceanico and The
Registry Collection – was
significant to attract the right
profile of visitor. Brown said:
“We spent double on London
Underground advertising this
year and feedback from
exhibitors indicates that it was
effective.”
Though ostensibly a
consumer show, the Expo
attracted a high level of
developer interest. Paul
Mac Sherry of The Registry
Collection, Europe, said: “A lot
of industry visitors came to our
table resulting in half a dozen
strong leads. It was a valuable
opportunity to sit down with
several developers we’re in
16/11/09 09:53 Page 3
The three-day Fractional Life Expo attracted about 8,000 visitors.
discussions with to talk
through ideas in a relaxed and
informal setting.”
Nat Alexander of supercar
club Marque II noticed a
change in the attitude of
visitors to the Expo. He said:
“Last year there was a definite
air of caution and hesitancy in
the market. This year people
are a little bit more confident.
They’re setting themselves
budgets to invest and to have a
bit of fun with.”
FRACTIONAL SUMMIT
RETURNS IN 2010
The Fractional Summit 2010,
Europe’s largest B2B fractional
property conference, will take
place on 18-19 February 2010
at the prestigious Marriott
London, Grosvenor Square.
Building on the success of
2009’s event which attracted
over 210 delegates from 23
countries, and the raised level
of interest in fractional
properties in Europe, the
Fractional Summit 2010 will
offer a unique opportunity to
meet key fractional industry
players under one roof.
The Registry Collection will,
for the third consecutive year,
be headline sponsors of the
Summit, giving visitors the
opportunity to meet with its
representatives at its stand and
to hear their views on the
industry during several panel
debates in which they will be
participating.
Nick Turner, head and VP of
The Registry Collection,
Europe, who will be presenting
during the Summit sessions,
said: “Like us, Fractional Life
was one of the pioneers in the
fractional market and has now
become a pivotal part of this
rapidly growing market by
providing many industry
associates with a virtual
marketplace in which to
present products and services
to a very relevant audience.
“This has been a good year
for fractionals in Europe with
high levels of developer interest
and activity – we have signed
six new European affiliates in
the last 12 months. There has
been much media focus on
fractional products, which have
featured in both The Property
Investor Show & OPPLive event
and A Place In The Sun and we
were invited to participate in
forum and panel discussions at
both, while our company and
affiliated developer projects
have been the subject of much
positive media coverage,
including featuring in leading
UK newspapers The
Independent on Sunday, The
Daily Mail, The Sunday Express
and Country Life International
magazine.”
The 2010 Summit theme
Changing Times, Changing
Markets is designed to help
new developers and
professionals enter the
industry, as well as explore the
challenges and opportunities
presented by the growth of the
fractional market in Europe.
■ For sponsorship and speaker
opportunities visit
info@fractionallife.com or call
+44 (0)20 8340 7989 for more
details. To book tickets visit
www.fractionalsummit.com
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RCInside
I N F O R M AT I O N E X C LU S I V E LY F O R R C I A F F I L I AT E S

NEW HORIZONS
FOR RCI MEMBERS
2009 has seen the
addition of a number of
exciting new resorts to
the RCI and The Registry
Collection exchange
programmes.

LISTENING to members and monitoring

member satisfaction levels is a priority for
RCI’s operations and customer service
teams. Topping the members’ wish list is C VENICE ON WATER offers a unique holiday experience, allowing guests to visit the waterways
the desire for an ever greater variety of of the iconic Italian city staying in luxury two-bedroom houseboats only five kilometres from the
destinations and holiday experiences. centre of Venice. The water-borne resort is affiliated to The Registry Collection and is the first of
RCI’s business development team has a planned fleet of 10 vessels to be developed by MAP Destinations, the largest timeshare
succeeded in introducing 35 new properties marketer in Malta.
to the company’s exchange network across
the EMEAI region including six to
The Registry Collection luxury
exchange programme. Broken
down by region, 20 of the new
affiliations are in Europe, 11 are in
India and four in South Africa.
Brett Archibald, SVP business
development, RCI, EMEAI, said: “In
a year of huge trading challenges
I’m happy to be able to report RCI in
Europe has affiliated a significant
number of exciting new properties.
We have expanded our portfolio with
new properties in fresh destinations
such as Venice, Turkey, Finland and
Greece – also increasing the reach
of consumer source markets. We
are confident that we have proven
RCI is the right choice for existing
and new affiliates.
“As the year draws to a close
our message to our developers and
associates is that we’ll make sure
we continue to deliver the best
business opportunities to them,
great holidays to our members and
an excellent service to both.” C KARTAS THERMAL & SPA RESORT was developed by Kartas Turizm and is due to open in 2009.
■ Visit www.rciventures.com to view Built to meet the growing demand for spa resorts in Turkey, the property in the Cavlak area of
the latest RCI affiliation news. Bogazliyan, Yozgat is affiliated to RCI’s holiday exchange network.

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8 RCI Ventures, November 2009
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C CLUB MAHINDRA BACKWATER RETREAT is one of four new RCI

C SITHONIA BEACH CLUB @ Porto Carras is an
RCI-affiliated mixed-use resort in Halkidiki, Greece.
The property is on a beach with access to many water
sports and activities such as tennis, a health club and
horse riding.
affiliations this year from major hospitality brand, Club Mahindra. The
property is located on the peaceful banks of Ashtamudi Lake in India.
Historic Kollam is the gateway to Ashtamudi and is just 15 kilometres
from the resort by road or 10 minutes by speedboat. The resort has
25 rooms spread across five chalets, each with a view of the gardens
and lake.

A CASTLEBURN, part of Legacy Private

Residencies and affiliated to The Registry
Collection, sits in the foothills of the
southern Drakensberg in the KwaZulu-Natal
region of South Africa. The four-bedroom
architect-designed cottages are built of
local stone and positioned on the edge of
Lake Madingofani.

C ARCOS GARDENS GOLF CLUB & COUNTRY ESTATE is one of the most recent signings to The Registry Collection from Novaterra Resorts. The
luxury residential golf resort is built in Spain’s traditional heartland close to Cadiz and will be a development of 470 properties of different types.
Ownership offers discounted golf memberships, complimentary golf clubs and the use of an Audi A4 car during the stay.

RCI Ventures, November 2009 9|

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RDOnews
L AT E S T N E W S F R O M T H E R E S O R T D E V E LO P M E N T O R GA N I S AT I O N
CHANGE AND CHALLENGE
The past year has been a
hugely significant one for the
Resort Development
Organisation (RDO) as well as
the European timeshare
industry in general. In a
landmark development the
new Timeshare Directive has
been passed into EU law and
member state implementation
set for 2010/11.
In spring we changed our
name from OTE to RDO to
reflect the changing nature of
the industry and its products.
RDO chief The name change enabled
executive PAUL the organisation to broaden
its representation to
GARDNER- fractional and private
BOUGAARD looks residence clubs in Europe.
Since then, the Fractional &
back at a year of Shared Ownership Trade
change for the Association (FSOTA) has
joined the RDO to become the
industry’s trade trade association to represent
body and considers the fractional industry.
While 2009 saw the world
the challenges of in recession, the RDO report
the future. on timeshare in Europe,
published in May, painted a
picture of a strong, vibrant
industry enjoying occupancy
rates of 72 per cent for the
year in Europe’s 1,312 resorts
– which is 67 million bed
nights – with a consumer
satisfaction rating of more
than 86 per cent.
Unfortunately, the
challenging economic times
have brought more scams to
the market – particularly in
the UK and Spain – to prey on
unsuspecting purchasers and
timeshare owners. This has
kept RDO’s Enforcement
Team exceptionally busy. The
good news is that it has
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10 RCI Ventures, November 2009
achieved notable successes
with the police and media in
Spain and elsewhere in
closing down rogue operators
and protecting consumers
from loss.
Our new website
www.Gotimeshare.org went
live at the beginning of the
year, being recognised by
Google as an approved news
site in the summer, with
www.Gofractional.org
following suit. Both sites
continue to grow in
popularity, helping spread
positive news about shared-
ownership property.
We were disappointed to
have to cancel this year’s
RDO conference, though
pleased to say we’re looking
at 2010 options. We will,
however, support the 2009
Forum event being organised
by Generator and Perspective
Magazine in London in
December.
LOOKING AHEAD
So where does RDO want to
go in 2010? The recession has
inevitably put our focus on
cost base and increasing
efficiencies in the coming
year. This will be coupled with
a continued drive to create
value for money for our
members – for which we
welcome any input.
A Membership Fee
Working Group is looking at
fees, levies and ways to
finance RDO in the future and
will be reporting later this
year.
RDO will continue to
strengthen its new websites
and improve search engine
rankings. Supporting
National Chapters through
the implementation of the EU
Timeshare Directive in
member states will also be a
key initiative and it’s
anticipated that funding for
the Chapters can be
enhanced. There are plans to
establish new Chapters in
member states where an
RDO presence can be
justified.
The continued support
and expansion of the
Enforcement Programme
remains a key objective as
members place great faith in
the work being done by
Alberto Garcia and his team
(see opposite page).
This work is not only
recognised by RDO members,
but also acknowledged by
consumer organisations, the
police and the media across
Europe. Enforcement has
become one of RDO’s key
activities and something for
which it continues to gain
recognition and positive
publicity.
Our ultimate goal is that
every organisation operating
in the European industry
can’t afford not to be a
member of RDO.
The fact that non-
members reap the benefits of
our work without contributing
to its funding continues to be
a serious issue. We’re trying
to rectify this situation over
the coming year by adding
value to RDO membership to
encourage all the non-RDO
members to get on board.
workV-RDO-rb-sa-rb-JP:Layout 1 16/11/09 13:34 Page 3

THE FIGHT BACK A vital element of the RDO’s work is its

Enforcement Programme, which is designed to combat the industry’s rogue
operators in Europe through liaison with police and government agencies.
The Programme is headed by Alberto Garcia, a former Spanish police
inspector who spent five years fighting organised crime in the Canary Islands
and who talks to STEVE ADAMS in an exclusive interview for RCI Ventures.

Ventures (V): How did you become
involved with the timeshare industry?
Alberto Garcia (AG): In 2003, shortly
after TUI invested in Anfi del Mar, the
company offered me a senior position on
its Executive Committee to help protect its
business and public image. This gave me
the opportunity to learn everything about
the timeshare industry.
V: When did you start working for RDO
and what was your first task?
AG: I joined in 2007 when the industry’s
image was being badly affected by bogus
discount travel membership clubs and
fraudulent resale companies operating
with almost complete impunity. The
majority of consumer associations,
politicians and police forces thought these
fraudulent activities were being committed
by timeshare operators. It became clear
that before tackling the fraudulent
activities, I first had to show the
establishment that the bogus operators
were nothing to do with our industry.
V: How did you approach such a
difficult task?
AG: We had to build up a close relationship
with European consumer associations and
the UK Office of Fair Trading. We
strengthened our relationship with
politicians at local town hall levels, as well
as in Madrid. We nurtured our relationship
with the Spanish police and became a
Governments and tourism authorities in
destinations such as Tenerife are working with
RDO to fight fraudulent activity.
reference point for some Spanish, British
and Scandinavian media.
V: What have been the results so far?
AG: I’m proud to say that after three years we
have helped improve the RDO’s image and,
consequently, the image of timeshare. The
number of bogus companies closed down in
Spain has increased year on year. In 2008,
25 companies had been closed down by the
police and 19 more had ceased operating by
August this year.
I think the best way to eradicate fraudulent
activities is through information. This is why
we provide intelligence to the main Spanish
and European consumer associations and
public bodies. The Enforcement Programme
has become the information centre about
bogus activities for the media, consumer
associations, politicians, police, timeshare
companies and consumers. Everybody now
trusts us, which is very important.
V: What factors have contributed to the
Programme’s success?
AG: Undoubtedly the combination of police
investigation methodology and timeshare
industry expertise. We also use competitive
intelligence analytical techniques and apply
specific techniques to each challenge we face.
V: You obviously face a lot of challenges.
AG: We do – on a daily basis – and it’s
something I truly enjoy. Detecting,
understanding and neutralising new scams
brings home to me the challenges ahead. I’ve
seen a lot of fraud in my career and I’m still
amazed by the imagination of the fraudsters
in the timeshare field.
V: There must be an element of personal
risk involved in your job – how do you protect
yourself?
AG: I’m very aware of the risks I face and I
take many security precautions, including
informing the Spanish police on a daily basis
of every step I make. I also provide them with
in-depth analyses of the activities that I’m
engaged in.
V: Do you think you will achieve your goal?
AG: Absolutely. We still have lots of things to
deal with but I foresee a timeshare industry in
a couple of years’ time unhindered by
fraudulent activities – or at least having no
more problems than other industries. This
may sound a bit naive but I strongly believe
almost everything is achievable in life.

‘‘
In 2008, 25 companies had been closed down by the police and
19 more had ceased operating by August this year Alberto Garcia

’’ |
RCI Ventures, November 2009 11
workV-Turkey-sa-rb-jp:Layout 1 15/11/09 15:02 Page 2

COVER STORY
QUOTE: WE SPECIFICALLY CHOSE RCI BECAUSE IT’S THE LARGEST
COMPANY IN THIS FIELD AND IT GIVES US A POSITIVE RESPONSE
RATE TO EXCHANGE REQUESTS. BEHZAT AKSARAY

TURKEY:
A RISING STAR
Turkey’s varied attractions and wealth of
natural beauty puts it in a strong position
to go beyond a traditional reliance on
domestic business and fully exploit the
international vacation ownership market.
GEORGE SELL reports.
investment – Cesme,
Dalaman/Bodrum, Didim,
STRADDLING the divide Antalya and Manavgat.
between east and west, Turkey tourism sector. As well as these
is a vast country with a One strand of the strategy well-known resorts, the
tantalising mix of history, is to move away from what mountainous interior region
culture and scenery to tempt private investment in tourist the ministry describes as of Cappadocia and the city
tourists. facilities. “the fragmented and plot- of Istanbul also attract
Despite a background of The Turkish Ministry of based planning practices” significant numbers of
political uncertainty and Tourism has a long-term towards establishing overseas visitors, while the
fluctuating financial plan, the Tourism Strategy of “tourism cities with Black Sea Coast is popular
fortunes, the country’s Turkey 2023, which aims to remarkable global with domestic tourists.
government is determined mark the 100th anniversary competitive power” on the Although new resorts are
to increase overseas tourist of the founding of the Aegean and Mediterranean generally funded by
numbers by staging a modern state by coasts. developers, government
concerted marketing implementing a more To this end, five main assistance goes considerably
campaign and investing in efficient, profitable and areas have been identified to further than marketing
infrastructure to support environmentally-friendly attract international campaigns and infrastructure.

|
12 RCI Ventures, November 2009
workV-Turkey-sa-rb-jp:Layout 1 15/11/09
Behzat Aksaray is general
manager of Club Dedeman,
one of Turkey’s best-known
hospitality brands based in
Bodrum and an RCI affiliate.
He said: “There are certain
government incentives when
it comes to tourism
investments in Turkey, such
as land allocation to tourism
investors on a 49-year lease
basis, tax exemption on local
machinery and equipment,
tax duties and charges
exemption on local
15:02 Page 3
Behzat Aksaray (above left) and
Vassilis Themelidis. The
Salutaris Thermal Resort is
one of several developments
built in Turkey this year to
meet demand for the spa
experience.
purchases, reduced
corporate tax rates, subsidies
on the employer’s share of
social security and
employment tax, and
interest rate subsidies.”
These fundamentals
certainly make investment
attractive for the shared-
vacation ownership sector.
However, Turkish resort
operators have traditionally
relied on the domestic
market for business as most
Turkish families holiday at
home due to the prohibitive
cost and visa requirements
of international travel.
NEW IDEAS
So how do Turkish
developers go about
increasing the number of
overseas visitors? As well as
concentrating on more
traditional beach resorts,
forward thinking firms are
looking to new trends such
as spa resorts and conference
tourism to boost visitor
numbers.
Vassilis Themelidis, an
RCI regional director, said:
“There’s a major trend of spa
and health resorts in
mainland Turkey which are
already very popular in the
domestic market.”
A good example of this is
recent RCI affiliate Salutaris
Thermal Resort which, upon
completion in 2010, is set to
become one of Europe’s
largest thermal holiday
villages. It will consist of a
hotel plus 204 two-bedroom
timeshare units of 60 square
metres each. Set in the
mountainous province of
Afyon, resort amenities will
include a hamam or Turkish
bath, saunas, indoor and
outdoor swimming pools,
thermal pools, a fitness
centre and spa. Timeshare
prices are expected to range
from €6,000 to €10,000
per week based on a 29-year
lease.
Club Dedeman’s Aksaray
says: “Turkey is a rich
country in terms of thermal
sources and the majority of
the new hotel developments
have thermal and/or spa
centres in their facilities,
especially in resort
destinations. These spa
centres are usually set on big
areas of the property, and are
an effective way to add value
to the bottom line of the
operation.”
Aksaray adds that
conference tourism is also
SALUTARIS THERMAL RESORT
starting to take off: “Istanbul
has become a very important
national and international
congress and conference
destination. In 2008 more
than 70 international
congress meetings took
place in the city, and in 2009
the World Water Forum and
the World Bank-IMF annual
meeting each attracted more
than 10,000 foreign
delegates. Both spa and
congress tourism definitely
increase a resort’s occupancy
rates and average daily rates.”
As the global economic
downturn continues to
impact both the tourism and
real estate markets, there is
an increasing openness to
moving to new
accommodation models
such as condo-hotels and
fractional ownership
vacation properties.
Themelidis said: “The leisure
real estate business in Turkey
has been booming over the
last three to four years but
now, due to the ongoing
global economic crisis,
developers are seeking
alternative ways to offer
their unsold properties.
There is major potential for
fractional and condo-hotel
opportunities across Turkey.”
Aksaray shares this point
of view. “Lately condo-hotels
|
RCI Ventures, November 2009 13
workV-Turkey-sa-rb-jp:Layout 1
COVER STORY
QUOTE: IN AN AVERAGE YEAR UP TO 30
PER CENT OF MY RESORT’S BUSINESS
COMES VIA RCI. TAYFUN SARMAN
Club Dedeman
Bodrum, right, on
the Bodrum
peninsula has
around 4,000
members and 147
rooms. Far right,
Antalya Dedeman
and, below far right,
Holiday and
Leisure Club –
Kusadasi resort.
and multi-use properties are
becoming very popular in
Turkey,” he explained.
“Certain brands are very
interested in increasing their
share of this market. On the
other hand some current
property owners, including
high-class boutique hotel
owners, are planning to
convert their properties to
the condo-hotel concept –
some have already done so.”
RCI ADVANTAGE
RCI is playing an increasing
role in developing the
shared-vacation ownership
market sector in Turkey and
has affiliated seven new
resorts across the country in
the past 18 months,
bringing the total to 42.
Themelidis said: “RCI has
introduced customised trial
packs specifically for the
Turkish market which are
designed to meet the needs
and requirements of the
affiliate community in
Turkey. These packs act as an
entry programme and a lead
generation tool for Turkish
affiliates, and provide the
ability for members to test
|
14 RCI Ventures, November 2009
15/11/09 15:03 Page 4
ANTALYA DEDEMAN
HOLIDAY & LEISURE CLUB – KUSADASI
CLUB DEDEMAN
TURKEY BY THE NUMBERS
■ Modern Turkey was founded in 1923 by national hero
Mustafa Kemal, who was later honoured with the title Ataturk
(father of the Turks)
■ Turkey’s population is 76 million
■ The country has a coastline of 7,200 kilometres
■ Around 26 million foreigners visited Turkey in 2008. The
largest national group was Germans with 4.5 million visitors
representing a 16.77 per cent market share, followed by
Russians (10.93 per cent), British (8.2 per cent) Bulgarians
(4.77 per cent) and Iranians (4.31 per cent)
■ RCI has 42 affiliated resorts in Turkey
■ Vacation property rental prices: three-bedroom villa in
Bodrum – €400 to €800 per week; two-bedroom apartment in
Kusadasi – €175 to €350 per week; three-bedroom apartment
in Didim – €150 to €250 per week; one-bedroom city centre
Tayfun Sarman of Club
apartment in Istanbul – €400 to €550 per week.
Armonia Bodrum Evleri in
Source: www.holidaylettings.co.uk
Bodrum highlights the
economic benefits of
affiliation, saying that in an
average year up to 30 per
the affiliate’s product and the UK and Russia.” cent of his resort’s business
RCI’s member services. Aksaray believes being comes via RCI. Club
“To support the an RCI affiliate has clear Armonia Bodrum Evleri was
expansion of timeshare in advantages. He explained: completely refurbished in
the Turkish market, RCI has “RCI has two major benefits 2008 to bring its
also introduced a more for us. Firstly, it enables our accommodation and
flexible approach to fees, customers to go to different amenities up to the standard
both on the B2B and the resorts and countries for RCI members expect.
B2C sides of the business, to their holidays. The second is Aksaray is convinced the
address the difficulties of in helping low season sales. timeshare model is ideal for
operating in a relatively Some customers are willing the Turkish market. “I believe
unstable economy. to buy low season in order that timeshare and shared
“RCI also facilitates the to use it for exchange. We vacation, in a country where
introduction of international specifically chose RCI four seasons can be sold, is a
organisations to Turkish because it’s the largest very suitable and necessary
affiliates in order for them to company in this field and it product,” he says.
initiate sales to major source gives us a positive response “In Turkey people buy
markets such as Germany, rate to exchange requests.” summer houses, but only
workV-Turkey-sa-rb-jp:Layout 1 15/11/09
use them for one, or in a few
cases, two months. For the
remaining 10 or 11 months
the house stays empty and
gets damaged due to lack of
use and maintenance. As a
result national wealth stays
unused at the beachside. By
putting this national wealth
to use, timeshare not only
helps the country, but helps
people enjoy less expensive
holiday home purchase and
maintenance costs.”
CHALLENGES AND
OPPORTUNITIES
Having pointed out some of
the positive aspects of the
Turkish timeshare market, it
needs to be acknowledged
that there are some
significant issues adversely
affecting the sector, many of
15:03 Page 5
which will be familiar to
timeshare operators
worldwide.
Cagatay Alacam, CEO of
the Holiday and Leisure
Club, a timeshare resort in
Kusadasi, said: “There have
been, and still are, problems
with some operators
incorrectly marketing their
product and there is no
actual protection in Turkish
law.”
Aksaray agreed, saying:
“There are problems arising
from some sales methods
which lead to negative
coverage in the media and
on the internet. This can
cause developers difficulties
during marketing and sales.
Another big issue is the
Turkish government’s
unfavourable timeshare tax
policy. The Turkish Timeshare
Investors Association has
discussed this issue with the
Ministry of Finance several
times but there was no
resolution which has not
helped new timeshare resort
development in Turkey.”
The legal situation is a
sticking point when
marketing to overseas
customers. “Timeshare
doesn’t have a legal
definition in Turkish law and
so the country doesn’t have
a trust company system
operating between the buyer
and the seller. As a result,
even though Turkey is a very
popular holiday and second
home location with
Europeans, without a trust
company system,
international sales can be
very tough,” says Aksaray.
Other challenges facing
the industry, according to
RCI’s Themelidis, are “an
unstable economic
environment which affects
the exchange rate of the
Turkish lira against main
currencies such as the euro,
dollar and pound”.
The marketing of
timeshare has been a thorny
problem the world over, and
it’s no simpler for Turkish
operators. They use a variety
of methods but one-to-one
contact seems to be the
favoured route.
Alacam says his company
uses internet advertising but
prefers to contact purchasers
directly, and it doesn’t use
other marketing channels.
Sarman of Club Armonia
takes another approach. He
explained: “We use print
media such as adverts in
newspapers, but our main
route to market is by
participating in exhibitions.”
Turkey has much to offer
as a tourist destination – its
size, variety, natural beauty,
long season and relatively
low prices all make it
attractive to overseas visitors.
The Turkish government’s
determination to develop the
tourist industry is evident in
its long-term 2023 strategy,
and timeshare is well placed
to benefit. V
THE RCI PERSPECTIVE
Vassilis Themelidis, an RCI
regional director, says Turkey
has established itself over the
last decade as one of the top
tourist destinations in the
world, mainly due to the
government’s strategic
decision to attract tourism
investment and consequently
invest in infrastructure
supporting private tourism
investors.
“The main advantage for
developers is the establishment
of Turkey as a major tourist
destination and the attraction of
tourists from various source
markets,” he says.
“A Turkish developer has the
ability to market the product
domestically, to Europeans who
are travelling to Turkey, as well
as to visitors from Asian
countries such as Iran who
consider Turkey an ideal
vacation destination.
“Labour costs are relatively
low compared to the European
average and, as a result,
Turkish developers are able to
offer high levels of hospitality
services.”
Nick Turner, head and vice
president of business
development for Europe at
luxury exchange programme,
The Registry Collection, adds:
“The Turkish market has all of
the key fundamentals to make it
a very good market for shared
ownership.
“Turkey provides an
attractive consumer proposition
with a pleasant climate for up to
40 weeks of the year and
improving tourism
infrastructure has made key
destinations more desirable for
repeat visits.
“Accessibility is always a key
consideration and both full-
service and low-cost airlines
now connect key Turkish
destinations with several UK
airports year round.”
|
RCI Ventures, November 2009 15
workV-ChristelGolf-sa-rb-JP:Layout 1 15/11/09 13:55 Page 2

CHRISTEL HOUSE
QUOTE: THROUGHOUT OUR 35-YEAR HISTORY WE HAVE
SUPPORTED MANY CAUSES, BUT NONE IS MORE SPECIAL
TO US THAN CHRISTEL HOUSE. GEOFF BALLOTTI

ON COURSE FOR CHARITY

European executives joined colleagues all over
the world to tee off for the annual fundraising
RCI Christel House Open charity golf event in
June. STEVE ADAMS reports.

TIMESHARE, hospitality and
industry suppliers strode out
again this summer on greens
the world over for the annual
RCI Christel House Open charity
golf event.
The unique international
tournament sponsored by RCI
and now in its seventh year,
saw nearly 2,000 golfers and
hundreds of volunteers gather at
19 sites on five continents. Most
events took place in June, with
others later in the year.
The European event took
place on a wonderfully sunny day
at Ealing Golf Club in Middlesex,
UK, with some 56 players
participating in 14 teams of four,
followed by a drinks reception,
dinner and prize presentation.
Competition was fierce but
friendly, with ‘Team Vision’
claiming the first prize of two
weeks’ accommodation in South
Africa courtesy of Club Leisure
Group. Runners-up were
‘Fractional Life 1’, with ‘Three
Guys and a Birdie’ in third place.
The event raised more than
£20,000 for Christel House, the
charity set up by RCI co-founder
Christel DeHaan to help children
around the world break the cycle
of poverty and become self-
sufficient, contributing members
of their societies.
The money was raised
through entry fees, sponsorship
and auction prizes kindly
donated by several companies.
Worldwide proceeds for this year
are anticipated to be in excess of
$650,000. All proceeds will go
directly into programmes and
Three Guys and a Birdie: Martin Anderson, Paul
Mac Sherry, Marj Anderson and Philip Morley.
services benefiting more than
3,000 children attending Christel
House learning centres in India,
Mexico, South Africa, Venezuela
and the US.
“We are deeply grateful to
our sponsors, including our Title
Sponsor RCI, for their generous
support of this year’s
tournament,” said DeHaan.
“Likewise, our tournament site
hosts are the event’s heart and
soul – their collective efforts
have built the tournament into
an annual tradition that spans
the globe.”
Geoff Ballotti, president and
CEO, RCI, said the company was
proud to be the event’s Title
Sponsor.
“Throughout our 35-year
history we have supported many
causes, but none is more
special to us than Christel
House,” he said. “The
organisation’s incredible work
transforms the lives of
impoverished children around
the world and we are thrilled to
once again have had the
opportunity to sponsor the
tournament.”
Team Vision’s winning line-up, featured Stephen Price,
Tony Dangerfield, Bertie Edwards and Jimmy Kane.
Runners-up, Fractional Life 1, from left, Nat Alexander,
Piers Brown, Alex Foley and Pat Keene.
Madison Mayfair (Signature Sponsors): Peter Malone, Guy Lean,
Clive Hillier and Billy Skelli-Cohen.
Peter Malone of Madison THANKS
Mayfair, Signature Sponsors of A special thanks to all those
the European event at Ealing who attended and sponsored
Golf Club, said: “We decided to the 2009 European event –
get involved for some very Madison Mayfair, Fractional
simple reasons. RCI and the Life, FNTC UK Ltd, Samsung,
Wyndham Group are valued Nexus Leisure Group, GRM
clients of Madison Mayfair and Corporate, RDO, Active PS,
we have helped them in Perspective International,
recruiting and building their Crown Golf, Vision,
teams around the world. Generator Systems,
“We have supported a Ice Europe Ltd, RCI and
number of charities, but this Holiday Cottages Group.
year, we were so taken with
Christel House we put all our The 2010 European event is
charitable efforts into it.” planned for Monday 7 June. For
more information on taking part
For more information about and sponsorship opportunities
Christel House, visit please contact Amanda White
www.christelhouse.org V amanda.white@rci.com

|
16 RCI Ventures, November 2009
VenNov Registry Ad:Layout 1 18/11/09 17:09 Page 1

“Winner of the Best Fractional Service

Award – 2009 Overseas Property
Professional Industry Awards”

Contact Amanda Worsley on tel: +44 (0) 208 762 6635

email: amanda.worsley@rci.com to arrange an
appointment or for further information
visit www.theregistrycollection.com
workV-CharityRes-sa-rb-jp:Layout 1 15/11/09 13:56 Page 2

CHARITY INCENTIVES
QUOTE: PART OF THIS PROCESS IS TO CELEBRATE OUR SUCCESS
AND TO CONTRIBUTE IN A WAY THAT HELPS THOSE WHO ARE NOT
AS FORTUNATE AS WE ARE. MARK CUSHWAY

SIMPLY GIVING Resort Properties’ latest

development project isn’t for holidaymakers
seeking fun in the sun. Instead it will benefit
impoverished orphans in Kenya. Managing director
MARK CUSHWAY explains how and why one of
timeshare’s most successful companies is helping
those far less fortunate.

FOR many years the timeshare industry

has been synonymous with exotic
locations, glitzy lifestyles and big
business. However, during a holiday visit
to Mombasa, Resort Properties’ sales
team advisor, Anthony Yateman, caught
a glimpse of a very different world. This
insight led to the company supporting a
valuable social project by building an
accommodation block for 60 orphans at
a school in the region.
Mombasa is a place of startling
contrasts. A thriving tourist industry
exists alongside the sad realities of
the developing world – poverty,
malnutrition, violence and the woefully
inadequate provision of healthcare and
education.
It was in response to these serious
social problems that a local
couple, Freddy Kinyanjui Gachao
and Mary Njoki, founded the
Marianna Glorious Academy in
2002. With a fundamental goal to
provide primary education and
care to children living below the
poverty line, the school opened its
doors to just 15 local boys and
girls.
Despite a lack of resources,
and the fact that many pupils
remain unable to pay the fees of
£14 per term, the academy has
gained such momentum that it
currently educates over 430
children and remains true to its
original mission that ‘no local
child is turned away’.
BEYOND EDUCATION
In addition to traditional academic
subjects, the school encourages pupils
to engage in a wide range of
extracurricular activities including MOUNTAINS TO CLIMB
music, drama and sports. It also The majority of local children face
provides counselling on issues such as extreme challenges in their daily lives –
drug use, HIV/AIDS, spiritual growth drugs, poverty and abuse – while there
and reproductive health. are also many who have lost both
Above all, the Academy provides a parents to the ravages of the HIV virus.
haven – a place where young people can With HIV infection rates in the poorer
find a calm loving community, united in areas sometimes running as high as
its mission to educate and nurture. The 10 per cent, the disease has had a very
Academy’s ultimate purpose is to help real and tragic impact on the lives of a
its young pupils to build a better life by significant number of children at the
gaining independence and confidence Academy.
to enable them to be able to look after Orphans often find themselves in
themselves and their families. the care of friends or relatives who
cannot afford another hungry mouth to
feed. In many cases their presence is
too much for the guardians to handle
and the children find themselves
homeless, exposed to the associated
dangers and hardships of a life on the
streets.
This grave situation presented a big
challenge for the Marianna Glorious
Academy. With so many children
already drawing on the school’s limited
resources, it had proven virtually
impossible to provide shelter for these
vulnerable young people.
“THE ACADEMY HAS GAINED SUCH
MOMENTUM THAT IT CURRENTLY
EDUCATES OVER 430 CHILDREN AND
REMAINS TRUE TO ITS ORIGINAL
MISSION THAT NO LOCAL CHILD IS
TURNED AWAY.”

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18 RCI Ventures, November 2009
workV-CharityRes-sa-rb-jp:Layout 1 15/11/09 13:56 Page 3

THE DRIVING FORCE

For a number of years Resort Properties has been involved in several
charitable causes around the globe. As well as regularly donating to
Christel House, the company is also the official corporate sponsor for
the Malta Hospice Movement and supports several mainstream
charities.
So what motivates this team of professional and hardworking
salespeople to give up their free time to help those less fortunate than
themselves?
As part of our ongoing life-coaching programme, we explore all
aspects of our lives – family, financial, physical, emotional, professional
and spiritual – and try to bring a balance of all those elements to the way
we live. Part of this process is to
A HELPING HAND celebrate our success and to
Fortunately, the contribute in a way that helps those
accommodation predicament who are not as fortunate as we are.
the Academy faced was When I heard about the situation
brought to the attention of the at the school, and especially the
team at Resort Properties. plight of the AIDS-orphaned children,
While holidaying in Kenya last I spoke to my team and asked them if
year, sales team advisor, they were prepared to raise the funds
Anthony Yateman, visited the for the new dormitory block. The
Academy and was profoundly response was phenomenal and
touched by the community’s before I knew it the team was coming
efforts to better itself in the up with lots of ideas to raise the
face of such hardship and money needed for this project.
adversity. “THROUGH OUR LIFE-COACHING PROGRAMME WE And raise money they did – in one
Being genuinely moved day alone they collected over £11,500.
HAVE LEARNT TO GIVE SOMETHING BACK AND
by what he saw, Anthony Fundraising took the form of an
THIS OUTLOOK AND ACTION HAS HELPED MANY
decided to devote auction of donated items ranging
considerable time to OF US BECOME MORE COMPLETE from DVD players and furniture to
helping the Academy create AND MUCH HAPPIER PEOPLE.” wakeboarding lessons and boat trips.
a programme to provide Another popular idea was the sale of ‘Duvet Days’,
clean water and books for the where individuals were able to purchase a day off
children. As time went by he work to be used at any time in the future with no
realised the scope of the explanation needed. Many agreed that these days
project was such that he alone were a bargain and they sold out in minutes.
couldn’t hope to put all the The company also donated a number of timeshare
vital plans in place and meet all weeks at its resorts into a prize draw.
the community’s needs. That’s With the funds safely in the bank, the Academy
when he turned to Resort was able to begin work on the two-storey
Properties for support. accommodation which, when complete, will house
Anthony came to me and explained he’d got to the up to 60 orphans and their care providers. It is
point where there was just too much for him to do. estimated that the whole project will be completed before the end
He explained the plight of the children, especially the of 2009 with the foundations and initial building work already well
orphans, and I understood why he was reluctant to under way.
leave the job unfinished. It’s great to see that our help is making a real difference in
Together we soon got things moving and within Kenya. For many years we at Resort Properties have enjoyed
weeks had the money in place to start work on the new exceptional success and prosperity. Through our life-coaching
accommodation block. Our company has also pledged programme we have learnt to give something back and this
ongoing support to the Academy and promised to outlook and action has helped many of us become more complete
donate some of our old computer equipment to create and much happier people.
a network so the children can learn IT skills.
We’ll also be sourcing text books and other To learn more about Resort Properties’ charity work or to
materials so they can start to build a library and make a donation to the Academy visit: www.resortproperties-
resource centre to help with their studies. charities.org V

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BUSINESS PROFILE
QUOTE: TIMESHARE WILL REMAIN OUR CORE BUSINESS.
THE ADVANTAGE OF BUYING WITH CLC IS THAT
PURCHASERS ARE NOT LEFT TO COPE ALONE. ROY PEIRES

TURNING SILVER TO

GOLD
The growth of the Club La Costa
Resorts & Hotels group, currently
celebrating its silver jubilee year, is
gaining momentum as it develops
new resorts at a faster rate than
ever. JUDI EVERITT looks at the
company with the Midas touch.

THROUGHOUT its beyond its traditional

25 years, Club La Costa
Resorts & Hotels (CLC) has
continually evolved and
refined its product
offering. True to the
company’s innovative
spirit, today its new resorts
are an efficient symbiosis
of leased back real estate
units which fuel its
high-powered timeshare
marketing programmes.
It’s a model that has
enabled the company, even
in world recession, to
move forward with new
developments.
NEW HORIZONS
Further announcements
are expected from CLC
next year as the company
expands its resort base
European holiday
destinations into several
new locations which are
under consideration in
Eastern Europe and the
Caribbean.
The recent opening of
the 350-unit Apollonium
Club La Costa Spa &
Beach Resort marks the
company’s first foray into
the Turkish market. It will
also be CLC’s 18th resort
affiliation to RCI’s holiday
exchange network,
following the recent
addition of the CLC Yacht
Club destinations in the
Red Sea and the
Mediterranean.
A second Turkish
venture is under way
which will be based on >

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CLUB LA COSTA –
THE MILESTONES
■ 1984 – CLC was
founded with the purchase
of 10 apartments at Las
Farolas, Costa del Sol
■ 1986 – Marina del Sol
developed on same site
and sold to British,
Spanish, French, German
and Russian markets
■ 1992 – CLC
membership reaches
15,000
■ 1997 – Roy Peires
enters RCI’s Hall of Fame
■ 1997 – Destinations
Club, a multi-destination
floating time club, is CLC’s first venture into the Turkish market and
introduced 18th resort affiliation to RCI is Apollonium Club
■ 1998 – CLC’s points- La Costa Spa & Beach resort. Different aspects
of the development are pictured on these
based Vacation Club is pages.
launched. Membership
hits 31,000. The company
embarks on acquiring
and developing its own
resorts in England,
Scotland, Spain, Austria
and Tenerife
■ 1999 – Official opening
of CLC flagship California
Beach Resort in Spain
■ 2003 – CLC’s highly
CLC – SECRETS “Given that timeshare sales successful Trial
AND STRENGTHS regulations are changing and Membership programme
the nature of the current begins
marketplace, we are ■ 2005 – CLC forms its CLC – SECRETS “We are continually working on
focussing our marketing own real estate sales and AND STRENGTHS improving both the holiday
programmes on SIVs and development company choice and the quality of
fly-buys. Recession has made ■ 2006 – Launch of Club services we offer our
people review travel and La Costa Yacht Club members. Efficient use of the
holiday choices and now they search rigorously ■ 2008 – CLC embarks on exchange area is one key tool
for providers that offer great value. So we’ve its first Turkish venture in this and to help achieve our
adapted our offers and how we present them, ■ 2009 – CLC announces goals we’re working closely
having launched several new online campaigns second Turkish resort with RCI, with particular importance given to the
which are showing excellent early returns. We while research into new improved use of IT systems. Our company’s IT
plan to roll these out to a much wider audience. destinations continues departments are jointly developing a new
“Consumers are discovering our excellent ■ Club La Costa has interactive two-way data link to allow the efficient
promotional holiday offers and contacting us! sales operations in UK, flow of information and improved booking use by
The whole marketing dynamic is changing Spain, Tenerife, Turkey, our members. Recently we also welcomed RCI
from us having to get clients in – they are now Russia and Portugal TV on resort to promote CLC to the RCI member
actively seeking out a CLC holiday experience serving its Vacation Club base, and there are further discussions on future
and agreeing to the sales presentation as an and real estate marketing promotions to address Vacation Club
acceptable trade-off for their heavily businesses. It conducts members’ use of the RCI exchange system.”
discounted holiday.” close to 100,000 sales Guy Mantel, CLC director,
Huw Jones, CLC creative director presentations annually. club operations & travel

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RCI Ventures, November 2009 21
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BUSINESS PROFILE
QUOTE: THE WHOLE MARKETING DYNAMIC IS CHANGING FROM US
HAVING TO GET CLIENTS IN – THEY ARE NOW ACTIVELY SEEKING
OUT A CLC HOLIDAY EXPERIENCE. HUW JONES
> the business model that
Club La Costa aims to
establish worldwide
featuring luxury mixed-
use properties having
outstanding facilities,
which at this resort will
include both a spa and an
18-hole golf course.
CLC chairman Roy
Peires explained: “We
have branched out into
whole ownership paired
with timeshare. By selling
the bulk of units on
leaseback we are able to
run even more successful
fly-buy marketing
programmes. This,
coupled with our
successful freehold sales
in Club La Costa’s
carefully-planned
communities, allows us to
increase the pace at which
we develop resorts.”
CLC’s more than
50,000 members and
hundreds of freehold
owners all benefit from
the new destinations and
properties which typify
the very best of the
company’s product
offering. The CLC focus is
on securing excellent
locations, providing
luxurious interiors,
attractive exteriors, a wide
range of on-site facilities
and services – together
with the assurance of a
strong and trusted
hospitality brand in CLC,
one of Europe’s premier
timeshare companies and,
says Peires, the largest in
terms of sales.
He added: “Timeshare
will remain our core
business. The advantage of
buying with CLC is that
purchasers are not left to
cope alone.
“Our owners benefit
from the full range of
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22 RCI Ventures, November 2009
14:03 Page 4
Club La Costa services at
all our resorts, among
which are 24-hour
reception and on-site
security, full resort
maintenance, a
professionally
administered lettings
service and more. This is
an attractive proposition
for both our real estate
and timeshare owners.”
In some of the
emerging markets these
advantages are seen as
crucially important by
purchasers because
standards relating to
build, and provision of
utilities and services are
something of an unknown
quantity to those used to
buying in mainstream
European markets. The
Club La Costa brand
represents an assurance
that the end product will
more than meet the
purchasers’ expectations
and aspirations, giving
them a sense of security.
THE DYNAMICS
Apollonium Club La Costa
Spa & Beach Resort is
off-the-beaten track in a
tranquil location. The
early interest in this
development shown by
consumers and its
consequent sales success
has convinced Peires that
unspoilt locations of
natural stunning beauty
are going to be winners
for CLC. This is something
of a departure from the
company’s tried and
tested successful formula
centred on developing in
the popular hot spots of
Spain and the Canary
Islands.
Diversity of experience
offered is clearly at the
heart of the new formula,
as Peires makes it clear that
his company will continue
to develop its traditional
favourites. He cites the
ongoing development at
CLC’s multi-resort site
between Marbella and
Fuengirola in southern
Spain as an example. It
was here, at what became
a CLC flagship property,
that the company created
its unique fusion of a
California-style resort of
outstanding architectural
design with luxury
boutique hotel-styled
interiors.
CLC’s growth and
direction is masterminded
by a very ‘hands on’
Peires who sets the pace
for his team of directors.
A key ingredient of
success has been the
fearless and fast way the
company reacts to the
market environment.
Innovation and flexibility
are hallmarks of this
developer company, while
its leadership ensures CLC
strategies, policies and
plans are communicated
rapidly and dynamically
throughout its CLC – SECRETS “We’re all about diversity
organisation, which has AND STRENGTHS and staying fresh and
2,500 employees, the enticing. For instance, our
majority based in Spain first resort in Turkey has
and the UK. all the comforts our
Peires believes it is members expect and
CLC’s flexibility and more, while the CLC Yacht
freshness, along with its Club appeals to the
mantra of making luxury adventurer who wants to wake to a sunrise
holidays affordable, in a new place every day. Our search for new
which has seen the holiday destinations never stops. As well as
company not only Eastern Europe and the Caribbean, we’re
weather both the financial looking closer to home in Mallorca, Portugal
downturns and legislative and France. Our Vacation Club (VC) and CLC
storms which have Travel continue to grow, while members can
threatened the European book hotels and cruises across the world
timeshare business over with their points. Coming soon is our first
its history, but to emerge World of Escorted Tours expedition, offering
on the other side in a new holiday experiences.”
stronger position than Lucien Le Moing, CLC director of product
ever before. V and business development
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ABOUT ROY PEIRES

■ Roy Peires
was born on 12
December 1951
in Cape Town,
South Africa
■ Following his
academic studies
and obligatory military service, Roy
entered the restaurant and
hospitality industry and quickly
graduated to running his own
restaurant franchise
■ He moved to Israel and continued
running his own restaurants
■ Having sought further business
interests in the US, Roy was
granted a Häagen Dazs licence –
but he was soon turning his
attention to the real estate market
■ A commercial opportunity
CLC – SECRETS “CLC is one of the most
AND STRENGTHS pro-active and innovative brought Roy to the UK in the 1980s
and he founded Club La Costa in
developers in Europe right now
1984
and we’re pleased to be able to
■ From 1984, Roy has successfully
help the CLC operations team in
built and expanded Club La Costa
its drive for further
Resorts & Hotels, increasingly
enhancements to its membership
moving towards a mixed-use
offering. We greatly look forward
concept incorporating freehold
to continuing to support CLC in its future plans to
holiday homes
expand its resort base in both the UK and emerging
■ Married with three children, Roy
markets, which have so much growth potential.”
has main residences in London and
Susan Duncombe, regional director UK,
Marbella, where the two
Malta & Ireland, RCI
managerial hubs of Club La Costa’s
business operations are located
CLC – SECRETS “We continue to develop resort ■ Roy is a British national with a
AND STRENGTHS management in new areas, servicing not love of fast cars and boats. He
only the needs of members but also ‘collects’ Ferraris but has a
those specific to our property owners, ‘hardwearing Mercedes’ for
many of whom are also members, via day-to-day use
our property management division. ■ Through the Peires Family
Services included in such enhancements Foundation and The Smile
are, for example, arranging bank Foundation (which CLC founded in
accounts, utility bill payments, legal advice and unit rental 1999) Roy supports numerous
services. In fact, we aim to provide the complete turnkey charities and major charitable
solution to carefree ownership of a property abroad. projects
“Our resorts are also helping recession-hit clients by ■ An avid reader of biographies,
putting out excellent value-for-money offers on food, Roy admires business luminaries
beverage and in their on-site retail outlets. such as Richard Branson, Rupert
“Club La Costa is also now in its sixth year of the Murdoch and Warren Buffet
British Standards Institute ISO 9001:2008 Quality ■ Roy’s continuing ambition is to
Systems Management accreditation, demonstrating its build CLC into a leading inter-
commitment to the best UK standards which are national leisure company and brand
internationally recognised.” San Diego Suites, main picture, was the first resort ■ Roy says the secret of his
to launch the Californian Beach brand for CLC.
Richard Fletcher, CLC director, Pictured above is one of the catamarans of the CLC success is a combination of gut
resort management Yacht Club. instinct and experience.

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RCI Ventures, November 2009 23
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MARKETING
QUOTE: HOLIDAY WORLD IS A UNIQUE PRODUCT – IT’S RARE TO FIND A
RESORT WITH SUCH A LARGE NUMBER OF FACILITIES AND FIRST-RATE
ACCOMMODATION. OVIDIO ZAPICO

A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE
The resorts of the Costa del Sol have long been a draw for holidaymakers.
The latest Holiday World developments on the Costa, however, are
transforming traditional timeshare offerings with an array of first-class
facilities, reports SARAH LEE.

ON ARRIVAL at Holiday World you
realise there are few places like it.
Turning off the Costa del Sol’s N340 –
the road which takes visitors right into
the centre of a holiday heartland –
you’re greeted by a small herd of
elephants, albeit made of stone.
You’ve arrived at Holiday World,
host to a world of surprises. The
complex on the outskirts of
Benalmadena offers many experiences –
themed hotels with everything from
Polynesian á la carte dining to
boutique-styled spa hotels on a site
which will eventually include 13
four-star hotels offering 6,928 beds.
In April developer Grupo Peñarroya
opened its third hotel Holiday Polynesia
and the fourth, Holiday Hydros, will
follow in 2010, joining Holiday Village
and the RCI-affiliated Holiday Palace,
part of the Holiday World Vacation Club
(HWVC).
STRENGTH IN CRISIS
Grupo Peñarroya is a relatively new
entrant to the industry and, despite the
global economic crisis, it plans to place
a number of units at Holiday Polynesia
into timeshare.
Residential property developer
Cristóbal Peñarroya launched Grupo
Peñarroya in the 1960s, building 200
homes in the Costa del Sol. The
company has since developed around
30,000 properties between Marbella
and Málaga.
Cristóbal’s daughter Marifrancis
Peñarroya, one of four sisters in the
family-run business and Holiday
World’s managing director, said:
“Holiday World was born about 15
years ago when we bought 400,000
square metres of land.
“Building regulations meant we
couldn’t develop residential properties
on the land so my father decided on
hotels. People told him he was crazy to
go into a whole new market but he
wanted to diversify. I think it’s the best
thing he ever did.”
In planning Holiday World, Cristóbal
travelled all over the world to see what
other developers were doing, resulting
in a unique development.
Marifrancis said: “The original plan
was for 13 all-inclusive hotels but this

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24 RCI Ventures, November 2009
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proved difficult as my father wasn’t
known in the hotel industry.
“But someone from TUI travel group
believed in him – like us they wanted
good-quality accommodation in the
Costa del Sol, and so we embarked on a
10-year contract.”
The project is a truly ambitious one.
Holiday World Beach Club connects to
the resorts by shuttle and an exclusive
footbridge over the N340. Its seaside
houses share a water park with eight
different areas and entertainment for all
ages, including the Holiday Stadium
with a football pitch, tennis and
basketball courts, all with seaviews.
The whole complex will be
connected to the rest of Spain by train
when the soon-to-be-built Peñarroya
Page 3
AHoliday Village, which C The RCI-affiliated
offers self-catering and Holiday Palace, part of the
all-inclusive packages, has Holiday World Vacation
a lagoon-style pool and a Club, mixes hotel operation
variety of sports facilities with 148 timeshare units.
train station is completed, offering
connections to Málaga airport and the
national high-speed rail network.
The extent of the project – Holiday
World employs more than 1,000 staff –
makes it easy to forget this is a family
business.
Cristóbal and wife Mari Pepa have
three other daughters – Pepa, the
president of the group and the one who
drives the company; Ana, who manages
the sales side of the company’s
residential developments; and Monica,
who trained as an interior designer in
Madrid and controls the use and
purchase of high-quality materials in
the properties’ inspired interiors.
Marifrancis said: “There’s a lot of
passion involved in a family business
but my mother brings a level of reason
to events, which works well for the
business.
“My husband Andres is also involved
in the business as project director. He’s
responsible for liaising with architects,
builders and engineers. We were
delighted when he started working for
the business – as a family dominated by
women we weren’t as interested in this
side of things.”
Cristóbal now has time to plan
future projects and travels to gain
insight and inspiration from other
tourism projects. He is now working on
the group’s next hotel, Holiday World
Venetian, which will be based on ideas
gathered from a stay at The Venetian in
Las Vegas.
Though Grupo Peñarroya’s plans are
never less than ambitious, there is a
sense of confidence in all they do. A
testament to this is the numerous
awards Holiday World has received,
including TUI’s Best Hotel in the World.
Praise indeed for a company relatively
new to the business. So what’s the
secret?
“When you do what your clients
want and produce quality you will be
successful,” said Marifrancis. “The Costa
del Sol needed a refresh. We arrived
with new ideas and quality all-inclusive
resorts – fantasy hotels. No one else
offers all-inclusive here as they don’t
have the space.
“It’s not just about eating and
drinking but facilities – you need a
swimming pool, mini golf, a spa,
children’s club and evening
entertainment. Members of HWVC
don’t just buy a week here but
everything on site – for 30 years.”
Her sentiments are echoed by Ovidio
Zapico, regional director, Spain and
Italy, for RCI, HWVC’s exchange
company. He said: “Holiday World is a
unique product – it’s rare to find a
resort with such a large number of
facilities and first-rate accommodation.
We are proud to be partnering with
Grupo Peñarroya, which is investing
heavily in the Costa del Sol and adding
to the quality resorts in the region.”
Marifrancis added: “In time we
intend to offer timeshare in all of our
hotels. Diversified Resorts has been
working with us for two years and we
want them to sell into Holiday Polynesia
when we have finished sales at Holiday
Palace.
“We also plan to work closely with
RCI as it is helping us bring this project
to fruition.
“We have found RCI and Diversified
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RCI Ventures, November 2009 25
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MARKETING
QUOTE: WE HAVE FOUND RCI AND DIVERSIFIED RESORTS TO BE HONEST
AND WE VALUE THE TRUST THEY PUT IN US WHEN WE DECIDED TO ENTER
TIMESHARE. MARIFRANCIS PEÑARROYA
Resorts to be honest and we value the
trust they put in us when we decided to
enter timeshare.”
DIVERSIFIED TARGETS NEW MARKETS
As HWVC’s marketing company of
choice, Diversified Resorts has a huge
task on its hands, but with more than
18 years’ experience in the Costa del
Sol, the company has good cause for
optimism.
The opening of Holiday Polynesia
and Holiday Hydros resorts is hotly
anticipated by David Gibson of
Diversified Resorts, as the marketers
know the impressive facilities at the
new hotels will have a huge impact on
Holiday Palace’s sales decks.
Business director Gibson said: “Entry
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26 RCI Ventures, November 2009
08:58 Page 4
C High-spec interiors
and quality furnishings
complement the
holiday experience at
Holiday Hydros.
A Holiday Polynesia
has become part of the
Holiday World Vacation
Club and a number of
its units will be
allocated to the group’s
timeshare offering.
prices at Holiday Palace start at £4,500
(€5,000) for a week share in a one-
bedroom apartment. The offering has a
seasonal market and as we’ll be
marketing to package tourists, we’re
dealing with a very different client
profile to that of most timeshare. We
hope the quantity of leads will further
improve with the opening of the new
hotels which will also attract a different
profile of clientele.
“Our role is varied. At some sites we
offer sales and marketing alone. But we
also use our expertise to help resorts
further.
“At Holiday World for instance we
set the timeshare operation up from
scratch, including getting involved in
the legalities of sales structures. The
Peñarroyas were very keen everything
should be done properly and we were
able to support them.
“The Holiday World concept is very
good as it has something for everyone.
There is also a great three-way
relationship between us, the Peñarroya
family and RCI.
“There was a view that you couldn’t
combine a hotel with timeshare here in
Spain. But RCI was keen to develop new
business models and has been heavily
involved in the project.”
Diversified Resorts, which markets
six Crown Resorts properties and the
Sunset Beach Club, see challenging
times ahead for timeshare marketers.
Gibson added: “A lot of the tried and
tested methods – website offers, direct
mail, member referrals and lead
generation on-site – don’t have the
response levels they used to get and
costs are increasing. Web marketing and
e-shots are still in their infancy and the
results are more difficult to quantify.
You have to send out a high volume of
information to generate results.
“Russia and some of the Eastern
European countries were good source
markets for a while but like the Middle
East these are not as strong in today’s
economic climate.
“We were picking up a lot of people
from the second home market but not
anymore. Property prices have peaked
here and exchange rates with the UK –
our largest source market – have
dropped.”
Gibson said when times get tough
there is a tendency for resorts to keep
their prices high, while at the same time
tour operators are dropping theirs, so
sales can struggle. He explained:
“Holiday World is on the right track,
and all-inclusive is the way forward in
this market.”
He concluded: “I think the timeshare
marketplace will shrink in years to
come – there will be fewer companies,
but those that stay will have a good
product.
“It will be survival of the fittest, with
an increasing number of larger chains
in evidence in Europe. And I believe
timeshare will become a product people
are really proud to own.” V
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FRACTIONAL
QUOTE: SAMOS HAS A BLOSSOMING TOURISM MARKET BUT IS IN NEED
OF A TRULY LUXURIOUS FIVE-STAR DEVELOPMENT TO SATISFY THE
DEMAND OF THE HIGH-END TRAVELLER. ROBIN BARRASFORD

Barrasford & Bird

Worldwide, a successful
UK-based international
property agent, is
expanding its business by
developing its own luxury
resort on the Greek island PHILOSOPHY
of Samos – a project that
will also include the
FOR SUCCESS
company’s first fractional
product offering.
STEVE ADAMS profiles
a business entering
unfamiliar waters.

AN ANCIENT Greek proverb says

‘Before you can score you must first
have a goal’, and it’s a maxim that could
easily be applied to Robin Barrasford,
managing director of Barrasford & Bird
Worldwide. Despite being talented and
driven, during his early career that
‘goal’ proved somewhat elusive.
After obtaining a degree in
Computers and Information Systems,
Barrasford became frustrated with
academic life and dropped out of a
post-graduate course in Mathematics
and Education. He joined Sussex Police
Force, where he stayed for ten years,
becoming one of its youngest-ever
sergeants and ultimately reached the
rank of inspector. During a year off he
moved to the southwest of England
where he converted a collection of
barns into a family home. This got him
thinking about how he could combine
his love of property with a full-time
entrepreneurial business.
THE INSPIRATION
A solution presented itself some eight
years ago. While buying a property
abroad, it occurred to Barrasford that
he could provide a useful service in
introducing and guiding new and
seasoned property buyers to the
potential of overseas property
investment. He’d found his goal.
Robin Barrasford,
Barrasford & Bird Worldwide – managing director of
formed with director Alan Bird – initially property agents
focused on sales and marketing properties Barrasford & Bird
Worldwide, has entered
in Bulgaria, taking minor shares in the world of resort
development companies to ensure development with
exclusivity and then introducing the Halcyon Hills Luxury Spa
Resort & Marina
properties to the UK market. The move (pictured top). Located on
was so successful the company expanded the Greek island of
into the Caribbean and has never looked Samos, the resort will
initially include 15
back – it has now handed over more than fractional units and is due
2,000 completed properties. to complete in early 2012.

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RCI Ventures, November 2009 27
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FRACTIONAL
QUOTE: THE APPEAL OF PROPERTY OWNERSHIP FOR LITERALLY A FRACTION
OF THE NORMAL COST SEEMED LIKE A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO PASS VALUE
AND QUALITY ON TO OUR CUSTOMERS. ROBIN BARRASFORD
From day one, the company, which
now employs more than 30 staff
worldwide, made high-quality customer
service a priority, offering a lifetime
aftercare guarantee and employing more
customer support than sales staff.
When it became apparent that the
developer could be the weak link in the
process, Barrasford decided the only way
to ensure consistent quality of service
from reservation to full ownership was to
become the developer as well as the agent.
He then took the unusual step of
canvassing the company’s database of
more than 65,000 clients to find out
what they wanted from an overseas
property. Once the information was
collated, he sought out markets
with genuine exit strategies and
strong government support for
tourism. The research pointed
him to an idyllic sheltered bay
on the south-eastern tip of the
Greek isle of Samos, which will
be home to the company’s first
development project, Halcyon
Hills Luxury Spa Resort &
Marina.
He said: “The development
represents a unique and desirable
property purchase. Samos has a
blossoming tourism market but is in
need of a truly luxurious five-star
development to satisfy the demand of
the high-end traveller.”
Halcyon Hills will certainly cater to
this client. The resort – due to complete
in early 2012 – has been carefully
designed to take full advantage of its
stunning location. All its proposed 209
properties will have panoramic sea views.
The resort will be centred around a
1,200m2 spa and feature a private beach,
35-berth marina, concierge service and
the facilities of a five-star hotel.
Accommodation will be made up of
42 studio apartments, 32 studio
kampanas, 30 one-bedroom kampanas,
44 one-bedroom villas, 46 two-bedroom
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28 RCI Ventures, November 2009
15:59 Page 4
superior villas and 15 three-bedroom
premier villas. Whole-ownership prices
range from £176,000 for a studio
apartment to £735,000 for a three-
bedroom premier villa with private pool
and garden area.
FRACTIONAL FIRST
In addition to whole-ownership units,
the development will also include
Barrasford & Bird’s first foray into
fractional ownership, with an initial
15 properties being sold in one-twelfth
fractional shares. Prices range from
£21,000 for a studio to £72,000 for a
three-bedroom premier villa, and more
units will be released as others sell out.
The move is something Barrasford had
been considering since late 2007.
“The appeal of property ownership
for literally a fraction of the normal cost
seemed like a great opportunity to pass
value and quality on to our customers
at a time when the credit crunch was
tightening purse strings,” he said.
On paper a great idea, in practice he
had concerns about splitting ownership
Halcyon Hills Luxury Spa
Resort & Marina will be
located in a sheltered bay on
the south-eastern tip of Samos
(main picture). Based around a
1,200m2 spa, the development
will incorporate a private
beach, 35-berth marina and a
variety of apartments,
kampanas and villas, all built,
decorated and equipped to the
highest standards.
and making it work among six to 12
separate owners – ensuring each had title
on the property they were investing in.
He said: “As one of the most
established overseas property agents in
the UK and being founding members of
the Association of International Property
Professionals, customer security is one of
our main priorities.
“Partnering with the Fractional
Ownership Consultancy in Guernsey we
were able to ensure an exceptional
fractional product that was perfectly safe.”
He believed the fractional product was
also a good fit with the company’s client
base, and added: “With Barrasford & Bird
being investment-based, the fractional
ownership concept appealed to our
customers, who are often looking for an
easy investment that doesn’t require 365
days a year monitoring and maintenance.
They benefit from the same capital
appreciation and rental guarantees as full
purchasers, but with a smaller investment
both in terms of financing and time.”
The capital appreciation and rental
figures quoted by the company are
workV-Halcyon-sa-rb-JP:Layout 1 15/11/09
especially impressive. As well as
guaranteeing an eight per cent rental
return over the first two years of
ownership, the company claims buyers
can expect an appreciation in value of
between 81 and 148 per cent by the time
the project is complete. (See table below)
Barrasford explained: “Most people
are buying now to get the maximum
benefit of the price difference from
off-plan prices to completion prices,
but having said that, the majority of
owners will be keeping their properties
for at least five years to benefit from
the lifestyle advantages as well.
“It’s a two-fold property purchase
really, meaning it makes a great
investment but also offers a stunning
five-star luxury property to enjoy
post-completion.”
THE REGISTRY COLLECTION BENEFITS
The icing on the cake in terms of
enhancing the buyer’s benefits is the
affiliation of Halcyon Hills to The
Registry Collection luxury exchange
programme. This enables the developer
to offer further benefits to its off-plan
PRICES AND RETURNS ON FRACTIONAL OWNERSHIP PROPERTIES
Type Current
Price
Apartment Suite (Penthouse) £21,000
One Bedroom Luxury Villa £30,000
Two Bedroom Superior Villa £41,000
Three Bedroom Premier Villa £72,000
16:00 Page 5
fractional purchasers, including one free
week’s accommodation at another resort
in the programme while they await
completion of their own property. “This
gives buyers a great indication of the
quality they’ll be getting with their
purchase at Halcyon Hills, once
completed, and gives them something
to enjoy while their property is being
built,” said Barrasford.
“It was incredibly important to us
that we partner with an exchange
company that embodies the finer
details of luxury property ownership
and The Registry Collection parallels
the same elegance and opulence that
Halcyon Hills will offer.”
The combination of a high-quality
product with real earning potential and a
luxury exchange option suggests the
resort could be a marketer’s dream, but
Barrasford said the crucial factor is to
fully explain how the model works.
“Our sales and aftersales teams are all
fully trained on the nuances of fractional
ownership, enabling them to provide a
comprehensive service right from the
very first enquiry and throughout the
Deposit Value upon Profit by Return on
completion completion Investment
£8,400 £27,768 £6,768 81%
£12,000 £47,749 £17,749 148%
£16,400 £62,365 £21,365 130%
£28,800 £104,231 £32,231 112%
customers’ property ownership,” he said.
Somewhat surprisingly, Barrasford
claims those fractional customers are
mostly the same people who would make
a whole ownership purchase.
THE MARKET
“In terms of income and target market,
while fractional ownership should in
theory open up the resort to those with
less available funds, we’re actually finding
that the target market is similar if not
identical to whole ownership,” he
explained.
“Fractional purchase allows owners to
spread their investment between varying
property styles, so whereas a customer
might have purchased a two-bedroom
villa at £385,000, they can now purchase
a fraction in the same property, plus
fractions in a studio apartment and a
three-bedroom villa, and enjoy a selection
of property styles during their holidays.”
Barrasford said the company’s market
is generally made up of households with
incomes ranging between £60,000 to
£100,000. The majority of purchasers are
from the UK, though “dozens” of buyers
have also come from the US, Middle East
and Eastern Europe.
“Fractional ownership opens up the
target market for luxury resorts to a much
greater demographic and in a struggling
market it allows purchasers the
opportunity of investing abroad with
minimal risk. It’s a great model, especially
with our great product.”
V
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TATOC
QUOTE: THERE IS NO SET STANDARD FOR TIMESHARE SALES STAFF HERE,
SO WE’RE LOOKING TO PUT TOGETHER A PROGRAMME – WITH THE
INDUSTRY – TO HAVE A PROCEDURE TO TRAIN SALES STAFF. HARRY TAYLOR

A CREDIT TO THE INDUSTRY

It’s been a busy 12 months for the Timeshare Association, with a
new consumer website, quality accreditation scheme for resorts,
expanded membership and more. STEVE ADAMS spoke with chief
executive Harry Taylor about an important year for an
increasingly important organisation.

THE 20TH anniversary year of The
Timeshare Association (Timeshare Owners
and Committees), also known as TATOC, has
certainly been one of its busiest. Formed in
1989 and still the only elected consumers’
association representing timeshare owners
in Europe, in 2009 the organisation has:
■ Launched a new consumer-facing website
to provide independent information on the
timeshare product
■ Acknowledged and rewarded the first
resorts to complete its quality accreditation
scheme
■ Increased its membership by more than
25 per cent
■ Expanded its membership criteria to
enable individuals (in addition to club
committees) to join
■ Published its own member magazine,
Sharetime, and
■ Played a key role in the development of the
European Timeshare Directive.
“It’s been a busy year,” says chief executive
Harry Taylor. “A busy year, but a good year.
We’ve achieved a lot of the things we set out to
do but there’s a lot more still to come.”
MAKING A DIFFERENCE
Taylor is clearly a master of understatement.
A concerted membership drive, tenth annual
conference, putting more resorts through the
accreditation programme, increased presence
on the internet and the development of a
training scheme for sales staff are all on the
agenda for 2010 – quite a task list for
someone who officially retired in 1998.
But Taylor freely admits his role is partly a
labour of love for an industry with which he is
genuinely proud to be associated, and
represents with increasing strength. The week
I spoke to him, three new resorts – Hollywood
Mirage, Palm Beach Club and Beverly Hills
Club, all in Tenerife – had been recruited into
membership, accounting for more than 50,000
new members. TATOC now has more than 70
member resorts (spanning the UK, Portugal,
Malta, Spain, Tenerife and Lanzarote), and
represents more than 250,000 individual
owners. The numbers are key to its credibility
when dealing with government and other
agencies, according to Taylor.
“Our strength is from our membership,
so that credence enables us to go to bodies
like the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) or
European Union (EU) and they’ll listen to us,”
he says. “They realise we work with the
industry, and not for the industry.”
Taylor says this credibility – and being
“the consumer equivalent of the Resort
Development Organisation” – enabled TATOC
to have an input to the new European
Timeshare Directive.
“We were concerned that it was going
over the top in certain areas and needed
strengthening in others,” he says. “We had a
few meetings with Arlene McCarthy, a
Member of the European Parliament (MEP),
who listened to what we had to say, and
some changes were made.
“Now the legislation’s come to the UK
we’re working with the BERR (the UK
Department for Business, Enterprise &
Regulatory Reform, formerly the DTI) on how
it should be implemented.”
It’s generally accepted that one of the
reasons the new Timeshare Directive was
developed was to outlaw the activities of
rogue operators mis-selling products such
as holiday packs under the timeshare
banner, which is also why TATOC has
embarked on a campaign to raise awareness
about the industry, providing information and
facts to potential buyers through a new
consumer-facing website (www.timeshare-
consumer-advice.co.uk).
“Most of the industry’s problems aren’t
coming from the timeshare product, they’re
coming from people who are feeding off
timeshare and trying to con consumers,”
says Taylor.
“The website offers free impartial help
and information on the industry and dispels a
lot of the myths about it. It’s essentially a
good news site, and something we hope will
encourage potential buyers to find out more
about a product they may only know through
negative media reports and sensational
newspaper headlines.”
GUARDIANS OF QUALITY
Taylor says TATOC is also working closely
with Citizens’ Advice Bureaus, trading
standards offices and police forces to
educate them about timeshare and help
protect the industry from the actions of
unscrupulous operators. To back this up, the
organisation launched a resort accreditation
scheme at the end of 2008, to provide a ‘kite
mark’ quality guarantee for consumers.
“It’s all very well for a resort to say it’s
four-star quality or whatever else, but we
wanted to look at it through the eyes of the
consumer. We weren’t interested in what was
acceptable to the trade, but to the consumer,”
explains Taylor.
The scheme is only available to resorts
that are TATOC members as well as affiliates

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30 RCI Ventures, November 2009
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of RCI or II, and to achieve accreditation they
must meet a variety of criteria including
health and safety issues, whether a unit
really is big enough for the number of people
it claims to accommodate, and the
techniques used by sales staff. Accreditation,
which has been awarded to 11 resorts to
date, gives confidence to potential buyers and
can be a huge booster for sales, resales and
rentals – a fact not lost on Taylor.
“We realise this is a good tool for
salespeople but we make sure it is policed,”
he says. “The accreditation is only valid for
three years, after which we have to do a new
inspection. If there are any complaints within
that time, each will be looked at and a reply
or explanation required from the resort.
If there are more complaints than is
acceptable, we will withdraw the
accreditation and publicise the fact.”
Taylor also wants to take the accreditation
scheme a stage further, by developing a
training programme for sales staff.
He explains: “At the moment anyone can
sell timeshare in the UK, but in America
you’ve got to be a real estate agent with a
license. There is no set standard for
timeshare sales staff here, so we’re looking
to put together a programme – with the
industry – to have a procedure to train sales
staff and provide them with a diploma or
form of accreditation.”
Taylor reports huge support from the
industry for the scheme – “there are more
Page 3
Harry Taylor, chief executive of the Timeshare Association (above left)
is encouraged by the response to its new consumer-facing website
www.timeshare-consumer-advice.co.uk, which is designed to raise
awareness as well as dispel a few myths about the industry.
than 40 salespeople who would go into it buyers – are finding us through the internet,
tomorrow if it was up and running” – but our helpline and other means, while realising
wants it to have UK government recognition, we’re a good and reliable source of
so doesn’t expect it to be up and running information about the industry.
until at least 2011. “RCI was one of the first major players
More immediate priorities include in the industry to associate themselves
expanding the organisation’s helpline for with TATOC as they saw us as a major
members and the general public, planning its benefit for their members. We continue to
2010 conference (scheduled to take place in work well with RCI on behalf of all
Nottingham from March 26-28 and likely to be timeshare owners.
its biggest ever), developing micro websites to “We also provide a good support network
improve the quality of information about the for resorts, can help or point them in the right
industry, and growing TATOC membership. A direction if they have legal problems, and the
campaign to recruit more UK-based resorts is accreditation scheme gives them an
about to get underway, with Taylor adamant additional boost in the eyes of the consumer.
that joining should be a no-brainer for resorts. They’ll gain credibility by association, and
“There’s a huge benefit to being a being part of what is effectively a consumer
member of a recognised organisation,” he club, and one that works very well.” V
says. “TATOC now has a lot of credence and
is acknowledged by many government ■ For more information about the
bodies, while increasing numbers of Timeshare Association, visit
individuals – including potential timeshare www.timeshareassociation.org
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RCI Ventures, November 2009 31
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MARKET REPORT: CROATIA

QUOTE: ALL THE BARRIERS TURNED INTO POSITIVES AS THEY PREVENTED
THE MASSIVE OVERSUPPLY OF HOLIDAY HOMES AND DRAMATIC PRICE
FALLS, SOMETHING WE HAVE SEEN IN SPAIN. ANNA GRYBEL-KLOC

LONG-TERM
PROMISE
Natural beauty, popular coastal
resorts and flourishing cities
coupled with political and economic
stability make Croatia a market with
real property development potential.
KATHERINE STEINER-DICKS
reports.
IF CROATIA was human, she would
be a brazen beauty with diverse
qualities that attract and inspire people
from far and wide. Despite the
country’s pending acceptance into the
European Union by the end of this year,
her core cultural values are not
expected to change, nor is she expected
to get swamped with over development.
Croatia’s political and macro-
economic stability, pro-business climate
and strong infrastructure planning are
all set to contribute to its long-term
investment prospects.
Visitors are spoilt for choice in
Croatia with its offering of stunning
coastlines, fresh Mediterranean seafood,
island getaways, lakes, forests and
cosmopolitan cities. Thorough research
is essential to ensure that, as an
investor, you have the right information
to determine which area of the country
will best suit your proposed source
market and business model.
For the developers of hotel,
mixed-use or residential resort
projects, there are some promising
opportunities, especially given the lack
of high-quality hotel accommodation
and modern housing stock, which are
in demand from locals and foreign
investors alike. Yet, according to
property analysts, Property Secrets, a
key question to ask yourself, regardless
of whether you’re a developer or
independent investor, is: Will my
investment serve as a pure investment
or a combination of investment and
lifestyle?
COASTAL OPPORTUNITIES
So what are the implications of each?
Property investment analyst Alan
Forsyth of Property Secrets, says by all
means invest in a coastal property, but
don’t regard it as a pure money maker,
but rather as a lifestyle purchase. It’s
unlikely to give you a guaranteed
return on your investment once you
factor in seasonal demand, which is
predominately driven by foreign, rather
than domestic interest. You must also
consider the relatively higher than
average house and rental prices for a
pre-succession EU market.
Croatian coastal properties, although
still comparatively inexpensive
compared to those in Italy or anywhere
else across the Adriatic, have already
accounted for some high growth equity
opportunities.
Based on October 2008 figures,
average prices for Adriatic coastal
properties were €2,300 per square
metre (psm) and €2,000psm for
properties on the northern coast and
€2,400psm for all other coastal areas.
Dubrovnik, however, is in a league
of its own, with rates of between
€4,000 to €8,000psm. All prices, even
accounting for the coastal property hot
spots, are expected to remain static for
Dubrovnik, pictured
left and right, is
Croatia’s capital of
culture. Property
here sells at a
premium €4,000
to €8,000 psm.

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32 RCI Ventures, November 2009
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An Istrian village, left,
typifies the natural
beauty of Croatia, while
Porec, above, borders
Italy and has much of the
charm of that country.
some time, according to Property
Secrets’ research.
Although some analysts are less than
optimistic about turning a lifestyle
investment into a money-making
opportunity, Ross Elder, managing
director of online lettings business
holidaylettings.co.uk thinks otherwise.
“Dalmatia and Dubrovnik are
particularly in demand with
holidaymakers and could support
further supply of holiday homes if
demand is sustained,” says Elder. “The
main driver for new property listings is
second home owners realising that
their additional property could be
earning them some extra money, or at
the very least paying its own way.”
But as more new builds come on
stream, investors’ potential exit strategies
become more and more limited. Anyone
currently looking to invest in coastal
areas would be advised to consider
buying coastal land, as demand – and
prices – are being driven by developer
demand for AAA plots. Although, in
practical terms, this move is best suited
to the seasoned land buyer who knows
the language and can get through the
legislation, planning permission and red
tape with relative ease. >
Page 3
SHARED SECRETS
While luxury private
accommodation exceeds
demand in Croatia, there
is certainly scope for
improvement when it
comes to high-quality
hotel resorts. In an
exclusive interview with RCI Ventures,
Anna Grybel-Kloc, a property investment
analyst at Property Secrets, offers the
latest insights into Croatia’s hot spots.
RCI Ventures (V): Which coastal cities
and villages draw the most visitors?
Anna Grybel-Kloc (AGK): The most
popular coastal region is Istria, mainly
because it’s better developed than other
coastal areas. It’s also close to Italy and
easily accessible for overseas visitors.
Other popular coastal areas include
Primorje-Gorski Kotar County and Split-
Dalmatia County. Coastal cities such as
Pula, Rijeka, Split, Zadar and Dubrovnik
are the main areas of interest for foreign
visitors.
V: Which areas of Croatia are the hidden
gems and why?
AGK: From the tourist’s point of view, the
hidden gems are the islands of the
Adriatic. From the property investor’s
perspective, I’d say Zagreb. As overseas
property buyers in Croatia focus mainly
on buying holiday properties on the coast,
the capital city remains fairly
undiscovered.
V: Hypothetically, if you had €45,000 to
invest in a Croatian property, which
locations would be most suitable in the
long and short-term?
AGK: I think in the long-term only Zagreb
stacks up from an investment point of
view as it has all the fundamentals in
place. It’s the country’s economic
centre, has a solid rental market driven
predominately by locals, and falling
property prices in Zagreb are creating
selected buying opportunities.
Given the current market conditions,
I don’t think there are any prospects for
short-term returns. In the past, such
opportunities could be found on the
coast, where prices were increasing
fast as Croatia became more popular
among foreign buyers.
V: Established holiday home markets,
such as Spain, have long catered to
foreign buyers. How has Croatia catered
to a foreign buyer and tourist market?
AGK: Croatia wasn’t friendly for
non-resident property buyers in the
past. The process used to be time-
consuming and bureaucratic, with many
title deeds being uncertain.
But, in my opinion, all the barriers
turned into positives as they prevented
the massive oversupply of holiday
homes and dramatic price falls,
something we have seen in Spain.
As for the tourist market, Croatia is
emerging as a popular tourist
destination, but lacks the high-quality
accommodation demanded by tourists.
On the other hand, private
accommodation exceeds demand.
V: What type of infrastructure is being
put in place for coastal and urban
cities?
AGK: The Croatian network of roads
and railway systems is fairly well-
developed. There are also seven
international airports and six
international seaports.
One of the main infrastructure
projects in Croatia is the railroad
between Zagreb and Rijeka, which will
drastically reduce the journey time
between the cities from four hours and
45 minutes to just one hour.
■ For more information about Property
Secrets visit www.propertysecrets.net
or call 0115 985 3963.
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RCI Ventures, November 2009 33
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MARKET REPORT: CROATIA
QUOTE: DALMATIA AND DUBROVNIK ARE PARTICULARLY IN DEMAND
WITH HOLIDAYMAKERS AND COULD SUPPORT FURTHER SUPPLY OF
HOLIDAY HOMES IF DEMAND IS SUSTAINED. ROSS ELDER
> Hotel and resort developers
would be wise to keep tabs on
an expected rise in coastal land
coming up for sale as the
government seeks to pay off its
$45 billion external debt bill,
which accounts for 66 per cent
of the country’s GDP.
CITY SLICKERS
For pure investment, cities such
Source: Centar Nekretina and Visium Group Limited
as Zagreb are where the
genuine opportunities lie, due
to local demand for modern rental
properties, according to Property
Secrets. Demand for modern apartments
is increasing from a local, young,
growing middle class looking for
coastal properties. There hasn’t been a
building spree since 1989 and there
is a deficit of apartments of at least
50,000 units.
Prices in Zagreb are likely to go
down about 10 per cent over the next
year, creating a good opportunity for
long-term equity investors. However,
according to Swiss-based property
consultants, Henley & Partners,
property prices in Croatia are likely to
rise between 100 and 150 per cent over
the next three to five years.
Buy-to-let investors will be
encouraged to discover that prices for
city apartments range between
€1,660psm in the less expensive areas
(for example Dubrava and Novi
Zagreb) to €2,578psm in the exclusive
areas of the city centre, which shows
CROATIA’S PROPERTY PRICE INDEX
MAY 2006 - DEC 2008
125
120
115
110
105
100
May 06 Nov 06 May 07
Source: Centar Nekretina and Visium Group Limited
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34 RCI Ventures, November 2009
11:42 Page 4
PROPERTY PRICES IN KEY CITIES – CROATIA 2008
City Av. Price Highest Price Lowest Price
€/SQM €/SQM €/SQM
Zagreb 2049 6555 920
Osijek 1130 1653 616
Split 2621 6296 730
Rijeka 1788 3516 900
Pula 1652 3554 752
Dubrovnik 3649 6505 1220
Zadar 1879 3157 1000
that they offer more value for money
than cities such as Prague, Budapest and
Warsaw.
It is also worth noting that Zagreb’s
city rental prices were on a par with
Warsaw’s just a year ago, which
suggests that there has been a slight
correction in prices in line with global
inflation and credit restraints.
Financial products are becoming
more popular with mortgage
penetration to GDP currently sitting at
15 per cent, which leaves a lot of room
for growth. High loan-to-asset value
ratios in recent years have spurred local
buyers to take advantage of low interest
rates of 4.5 per cent CHF on domestic Top, Venice is only a 30-minute boat trip from
mortgages and 5.5 per cent on euro Porec and makes for a memorable day-trip
loans. from the Istrian town, pictured right and
below. Dubrovnik, above, sits at the Greek end
But don’t think that Croatia has been of Croatia and is in high demand by tourists
unaffected by the global credit crisis. and could sustain an increase in holiday
Inflation has doubled from 3 per cent accommodation.
in 2007 to 6 per cent in 2008.
However, lowering commodity prices WINDOW OF OPPORTUNITY
are bringing down inflation which is a Croatia is a market to watch, especially
welcome sign. for developers of hotel, shared-
ownership, residential resort and
apartment properties looking to create
a new market opportunity with
long-term revenue generation
opportunities. The diverse choice of
holiday destinations within Croatia are
ideally suited to developers in the
timeshare and fractional markets.
The index grew by 21.5 per Croatia is undoubtedly a market
cent from May 2006 to that has grown quicker than most.
December 2008. In 2008 the
Importantly, it has the potential to be a
index grew overall by a mere
2.2 per cent, with a price long-term winner if infrastructure
decline towards the year end. developments are kept on schedule and
This is attributed to difficulties
developers work in harmony with not
in accessing finance and an
increase in the cost of only the government and tourist
Nov 07 May 08 Nov 08 borrowing and mortgages. authorities, but crucially, in sympathy
with the country’s natural beauty. V
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16/11/09 11:42 Page 5
RENTAL POTENTIAL
Katherine Steiner-Dicks
speaks to Ross Elder,
managing director of
online rental agents
holidaylettings.co.uk to
gauge the health and
wealth of the Croatian rental market.
RCI Ventures (V): What makes Croatia
unique compared to other markets in the
Mediterranean?
Ross Elder (RE): Croatia’s huge selling
point in the current economic climate is
that it’s outside of the Eurozone. It is
quite a cosmopolitan area of Eastern
Europe and benefits from appealing to a
wide range of visitors – family holidays,
city breaks and rural retreats. Its
coastline is mostly rugged and rocky,
generally meaning pebble beaches rather
than golden sands.
V: What are the average rental rates for a
coastal holiday house in Croatia?
RE: A three-bedroom villa on the coast in
August will set holidaymakers back at
least €1,000 per week, but anywhere up
to €3,500 per week. If they’re travelling
off-peak (May) they can expect to pay
between €650 and €2,700 per week.
V: And for an average apartment rental
in Zagreb?
RE: €420 per week / from €70 per night
(for a minimum two-night stay).
V: What are your expectations for rental
prices in Croatia for 2010 should
Croatia join the EU?
RE: If they adopt the euro there may be
some inflationary pricing as a result,
but Croatia is already very popular and
quite pricey because there’s a good
level of competition for accommodation,
the over development of holiday homes
is being restricted, so a change in rental
values is unlikely.
V: Would you say that customers
looking for a holiday home in Croatia
are more or less discerning than in
more established markets such as
Spain?
RE: They are either more discerning or
have larger budgets.
V: Do you think you’ll have more
Croatian properties listed on your site
this year? If so, what is driving supply
and demand?
RE: So far in 2009, a similar number of
new properties have been added to the
site as in the same period 2008.
Dalmatia and Dubrovnik are particularly
in demand with holidaymakers and
could support further supply of holiday
homes if demand is sustained.
The main driver for new property
listings is second home owners
realising that their additional property
could be earning them some extra
money, or at the very least paying its
own way. Providing a solution for
second homeowners is proving a
particularly beneficial message in the
current climate, but one which has
long-term effectiveness.
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RCI Ventures, November 2009 35
workV-CustSatisfaction-sa-rb-JP:Layout 1 15/11/09 14:39 Page 2

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
QUOTE: THE COMMUNITY CONCEPT SHOULD BE
EXTENDED FAR BEYOND THE HOLIDAY ITSELF, INTO
FORUMS ON YOUR WEBSITE. SALLIE BURNETT

FORGET fancy direct mail packs,

IN PURSUIT OF
Your happy
owner
members are
worth their
weight in gold.
HAPPINESS expensive inspection visits and prize
draws. The most successful catalyst for
sales efficiency in the holiday ownership
industry is customer satisfaction.
Customer delight is the number one
driver of loyalty, referrals and
recommendations – and it should be
the beating heart of your business.
But are you doing enough to
As the costs harness the potency of your product to
for marketing inspire existing members to upgrade
and evangelise about it?
to each new To surpass your owners’ needs and
client continue expectations you need to know what
they want. You should know how they
to rise, it pays feel, and what their hobbies, passions
to keep your and influences are. Such intelligence,
combined with the hard facts and
customers transactional data you possess, is a
smiling. DAVE priceless asset to your sales and
marketing strategy.
THACKERAY
talks to the PLAN To gather lifestyle information
you need a solid structure in place to
experts about evaluate and collect owner feedback at
ways to every opportunity. And you need the
versatility, employee empathy and soft
monitor systems in place to not only listen, but
customer actively respond and address customer
concerns.
satisfaction Juliet Mumford, director of market
levels – and research company Intelligent Insight,
specialists in customer satisfaction
the rewards it analysis, outlined the process she
can bring. follows to identify the business need
and then create an outcome to drive
business success and customer delight.

• Why are you doing this? Figure out

what it is you want to know. Make a
list of key objectives and when you
know what results you’re looking for,
you may discover the methodology
needs reconsidering. A questionnaire
might help you measure the benefit of
developing new facilities at a resort,
but is of little use if you want to
establish a set of personas upon which
you can base a segmented marketing
strategy.
• Set up focus groups. These should
Pictured from top: address the requirements and concerns
Juliet Mumford, of the different customers at your
Jeffrey Henning,
Sallie Burnett and resort. Couples think differently to
Diane Clarkson. family units in the way they holiday.

|
36 RCI Ventures, November 2009
workV-CustSatisfaction-sa-rb-JP:Layout 1 19/11/09
• Build the questionnaire. We’re not
necessarily looking for a wide range of
questions – we need to work
selectively to gather the exact
information the business requires.
• Gather data – and analyse. With
experience and an understanding of
the marketplace you can really drill
down into questionnaire responses to
discover trends and traits that you may
have been unaware of.
• Present the information. And do
so in a meaningful, simple and, most
importantly, actionable way. Everyone
across the business should be able to
gain a real insight into the mind of
the consumer.
DO Consistency is crucial if you
are to get to the heart of customer
satisfaction. Consistency in the way
you reach out for information, and in
how you share out the results and
action plans.
Jeffrey Henning is chief strategy
officer and co-founder of Vovici, a
leading enterprise feedback
management company. He said: “We
see a great deal of inconsistency in the
way companies often carry out
different types of surveys from which
the data simply cannot be correlated
effectively.
“With the technology available
today, the results from every customer
contact should be fed into a system
able to share this data in ways that can
benefit all your staff, whatever their
role and department.”
Henning recommends a seven-step
action plan to get on top of your
customer satisfaction strategy:
• Implement a customer experience
management programme. This is
simply an understanding of the
emotional engagement at each stage of
the owner experience lifecycle.
• Use a common platform to obtain
‘voice of the customer’ data. Stop
using incompatible feedback-
generating methods and start unifying
efforts so every piece of information
received can be used to build a
complete picture of the customer and
benefit all staff.
10:07 Page 3
• Integrate customer relationship
management (CRM) into every part of
your business so you can interact with
customers in a smart, personal and
efficient fashion.
• Share feedback internally. Too
often feedback simply ends up on the
shelf, but its value should never be
underestimated.
• Show your employees how their
actions are being perceived and
their subsequent impact on customer
loyalty.
• Create a customer community or
an open forum for customers to talk
about the organisation. Spearhead this
and you can directly respond to
concerns and build positive PR.
• Share feedback with customers as
they want to know what you’re going
to do with it – and the timeframes
involved in execution.
Like Henning, Sallie Burnett, president
of Customer Insight Group, a
Colorado-based strategic marketing
company, is a fervent supporter of
focusing on owner communities – a
perfect fit for the timeshare model – to
develop customer happiness and brand
advocacy.
Burnett explained: “You should be
doing all you can to foster this kind of
community feel, both on and off
resort. The community concept should
be extended far beyond the holiday
itself, into forums on your website.”
By developing an online community
you foster a sense of belonging long
after bags have been unpacked, added
Burnett. The ancillary benefit is that
owners will share a formidable array of
local information and insights into
your resort that may have slipped your
attention, or would give you
inspiration for the future.
Naturally, not everything posted
online will be complimentary.
“Some people may use the forums
as a place to moan about their
experiences,” said Burnett. “Turn it
into a positive – many companies will
capitalise on this insight to make
improvements or respond in a way that
demonstrates exemplary customer
service.”
Opportunities for gathering
customer satisfaction data are more
widespread and cost-effective online.
With the prohibitive cost of postal
surveys and restrictions surrounding
cold calling, the natural successor
which is gaining improved response
rates is the internet.
Diane Clarkson, analyst at
independent international research
company Forrester Consulting, said:
“Effective methods of gathering
intelligence on customer satisfaction
include surveying customers directly
and reviewing information that
travellers are telling each other on
websites such as TripAdvisor. Twitter is
also a growing source of market
intelligence.
“Customer intelligence is only
useful if it is acted upon – one of the
most important parts of monitoring is
to ensure that processes are in place to
inform appropriate internal
departments and circle back to ensure
useful insight was enacted upon.”
REVIEW Henning said: “Customers
no longer accept you want to
communicate with them on a
one-way basis – they need to know
how you’re implementing their input.
And it’s good news – this is a very
powerful way of building customer
loyalty.”
Having a new layer of customer
information means you can integrate
what you already know with what you
want to know. Owner contact is
enhanced with a contextual experience
based on your understanding of their
needs and history, and more
personalised interaction.
The subsequent amassing of
information can generate a formidable
resource for your sales team as they
embark on a discovery with their latest
prospect.
“Feedback will identify the gaps
between customer expectation and the
customer experience,” explained
Henning.
And once customer expectation has
been exceeded, you’re on the road to
customer delight: the holy grail of any
business. V
|
RCI Ventures, November 2009 37
workV-FinalCall-sa-rb-JP:Layout 1 15/11/09 14:45 Page 2

FINAL CALL
QUOTE: WHILE LONG-TERM PLANNING AND INVESTMENT ARE CRUCIAL TO THE
FUTURE SUCCESS OF ANY RESORT, WHEN TIMES ARE HARD THE BUDGET HAS TO BE
TRIMMED. LINDA FREER

LINDA FREER, managing director of Resort Solutions, a UK-

based resort management company, explains why bold decision
making can be key to surviving in a tough economic climate.

TAKING CONTROL

‘‘
THERE has never been
a more important time
to stick your head above the
parapet and be counted in the
world of resort management.
It’s no good sitting back, simply
hoping it will all work out and
blaming the recession for BIO NOTE
everything. This is one of the Linda Freer has
most challenging times we’ve worked in the
experienced in the last couple timeshare industry
of decades and it is experience for 20 years. Her
that you need to call on. former roles include
I’ve spent 20 years in the being operations
industry, taking resorts from director of
receivership to RCI Gold Crown, management
and turning around the fortunes company TMSI and
of 14 resorts. These things director of RCI
don’t happen by themselves Resort Management.
and it’s not something that can In 2005 she set up
be achieved working in isolation. And it most definitely Management fees need to be realistic in these Resort Solutions
isn’t something you can do by always making the difficult times. Maintenance fees may need to be with a business
popular, easy decisions. increased and inevitably will be, if only to take into partner, but now
There are plenty of things you can’t do without – account the return of the 17.5 per cent VAT rate in the owns the company
owners committees, sales companies, rental contacts UK and the changing sterling/euro exchange rate. outright. The
and friends in the industry to name a few – but bold While long-term planning and investment are company specialises
decision-making is probably up there at number one. crucial to the future success of any resort, when in property
The euro exchange rate has crippled many resorts times are hard the budget has to be trimmed and this management, guest
during the last couple of years and, while starts by looking at waste and where things can be services, human
management shouldn’t be about hedging bets on improved. resources, quality
exchange rates, Resort Solutions took calculated risks Resort managers are the best people to do this, so assurance and
in forward buying euros and securing funding at the make sure they are on board and working with you. information
average budget rate. You can only do this using Be sure to involve them in the difficult decisions. And technology for a
reliable statistics and a sound knowledge of your remember – cutting costs should not compromise number of resorts in
resorts and owners. customer service. the UK, France, the
We have also been proactive in not waiting for At the end of the day we are all in the holiday Canary Islands and
things to go from bad to worse. While 2009 has seen business. A holiday – and the anticipation of it – is a mainland Spain.
collection rates largely in line with 2008 and previous relaxing time when the trials and tribulations of For more
years, it is anticipated that 2010 will be a greater everyday life, as well as the word ‘recession’, should information about
challenge. For this reason we have dedicated new be forgotten, so let’s stop groaning and get on with Resort Solutions call
staffing to filling resort inventory, invested in new making people happy. Look beyond tomorrow and next +44 (0)1858 431160

’’
salespeople and new resorts to forge our own way year, make those bold decisions and plan or visit www.resort-
forward. for the future instead of worrying about it. solutions.co.uk

|
38 RCI Ventures, November 2009
 “Through the years, Hilton and RCI have enjoyed a great relationship. When we dream big and present ‘what if’ ideas, RCI
always steps up to help us bring our Owners’ vacation experiences to the next level. As a result, our travel advantages
remain unique, flexible and ever-evolving. Our successful collaborations with RCI are based on years of trust, and a shared
commitment to bring dynamic ideas to life. We celebrate RCI’s 35th Anniversary and look forward to the innovations ahead!”

Kim Robert Kreiger

Senior Vice President and Chief Club Officer, Hilton Grand Vacations
RCI Affiliate since 1993

With 35 years of experience, more than 4,000 affiliated resorts worldwide and over 3.7 million members,
we continue to be the global leader in vacation exchange. We are committed to bringing the highest level of
reliability, customer service and innovation to every developer relationship so that you can achieve your goals in
shared ownership. Because after all… your success is our success.

For more information, please contact: Amanda White on +44 (0)1536 314 651.

RCI and related marks are registered trademarks and/or service marks in the United States and internationally. All rights reserved.
©2009 RCI, LLC. All rights reserved.

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