Description

We are pleased to invite you to the 13th Annual International African American Hotel Ownership/Multicultural Tourism Summit & Trade Show on July 22-25, 2009 at the Doral Golf Resort & Spa, Miami, Florida. The theme is “Focus on Creating New Partnerships”. This event is presented by the National Association of Black Hotel Owners, Operators & Developers (NABHOOD), Black Meetings & Tourism Magazine and Horizons Marketing Group. This year’s summit will be exciting and packed with information to help you understand the many opportunities available in hotel ownership, investments & multicultural tourism. You will meet many industry representatives interested in doing business with African Americans.

The 4-day educational summit is designed to educate attendees on how to become a hotel owner or investor, share minority travel trends, learn how to market to minorities and look at diversity issues affecting the industry. The summit opens on Wednesday morning, July 22 with the NABHOOD/HBCU Scholarship Golf Tournament followed at noon with our Orientation Program for new & prospective hotel owners, Committee Meetings, Opening General Session and the Chairman’s Welcome Reception in the evening. General Sessions & workshops will be held Thursday through Saturday with the Trade Show on Friday. NABHOOD Corporate Dinners take place Thursday evening to allow new & potential owners to spend time with a preferred hotel brand (eligible attendees must sign up in advance based on availability). Several hotel companies will have Corporate Suites during the summit that you will be able to visit for information. The NABHOOD Awards Luncheon is on Thursday to recognize individuals and companies that have demonstrated through their actions a commitment to diversity while providing opportunities to minorities. The Trade Show is on Friday in addition to our “Focus on the Caribbean” where you can learn about investment opportunities. NABHOOD Career Fair & Job Expo will be held Saturday with the closing banquet taking place in the evening.

The summit is attended by African American hoteliers, entrepreneurs, national leaders and high-level hospitality representatives, professional athletes, McDonald restaurant owners, CVB’s, U.S & foreign government representatives and financial experts. These and other industry professionals will lead general sessions, workshops and seminars that will spark discussion on African American hotel ownership, public/private partnerships, financing, franchising, investment opportunities, creating partnerships, employment & supplier opportunities and the growth of multicultural tourism. Hear about the outlook of the capital market, where the economy is heading and how to get deals done.

The summit is the only conference that specifically caters to African Americans interested in becoming a hotel owner or investing in the industry. In addition to meeting industry experts, you will also meet individuals who are seeking partners and/or investment opportunities. Past conferences have featured some of the most successful African Americans in the industry as well as industry experts like Steven Rudnitsky, former President of Wyndham Hotel Group & now President of Dolce Hotels & Resorts and Prime Minister of Barbados, David Thompson. This year the summit will feature Sheila Johnson, Owner of Salamander Hospitality LLC who is developing a string of upscale boutique hotels; Tom Baltimore, President/Co-Founder of RLJ Development, who partnered with Bob Johnson formerly of BET to create one of the largest hotel companies in the country; NABHOOD’s Chairman Mike Roberts who is acquiring hotels across the country including the Caribbean and Ken Fearn of Integrated Capital who owns a number of major hotels & just opened the largest Residence Inn in the country at National Harbor, Maryland with his partners, Tom & Joyce Moorehead.

You will meet Margia Blankenship the first African American woman investor team who developed a Candlewood Suites in Houston, TX and Deanne Aires-Howard and husband, Leroy, who are building their second hotel and hear what Steven Joyce, President/CEO of Choice Hotels plans to help grow African American ownership; hear Vincent Vanderpool-Wallace, Bahamas Minister of Tourism talk about opportunities and learn about AAHOA and how they became the largest minority hotel owners in the country from Tarun Patel, AAHOA Chairman.

Invited speakers include Lawrence Duprey, developer of the three hundred million dollar W Hotel in Fort Lauderdale; Hubert Ingraham, Prime Minister of The Bahamas; Julian Bond, Chairman of the NAACP and Emmitt Smith, former Dallas Cowboys running back turned hotel developer.