46
Innovators
The Tourism Sector can be an economic k
ey
for a country
and it can al
so represent an ex-
tensiv
e source of empl
oy
ment.
What w
oul
d
y
ou say
are Zambia
s main assets to dev
el
op
this sector? What chal
l
eng
es does it hav
e to
face?
It is the continent’s second largest copper pro-
ducer and is naturally very beautiful with a wide
variety of wildlife in large game parks around the
country. Zambia is also home to Victoria Falls,
also known by locals as The Smoke that Thun-
ders, is one of the seven natural wonders of the
world and has UNESCO World Heritage status.
Peaceful and friendly with a great climate and
the first language is English which makes getting
around and being understood easy for most tou-
rists. Some of the challenges faced are the fact
that there are already many large international
hotel brand names in the country and there has
been a lack of training within the tourism sector
so experienced staff are hard to find.
The Lusak
a Grand Hotel
is part of the Best
Western Group of Hotel
s,
w
hich is w
el
l
recog
-
nized in for its qual
ity
of serv
ices and pro-
ducts.
When did it arriv
e to Zambia? How
has
been the ev
ol
ution of the hotel
?
Best Western Plus Lusaka Grand Hotel is the first
Best Western hotel ever in Zambia. The hotel
passed its Best Western inspection with flying co-
lors on 2 April 2015. Since then we have had very
active marketing in South Africa, Kenya, Uganda
and Rwanda plus exposure to the European and
American markets through Best Western’s inter-
national marketing efforts.
This has seen a steady increase in occupancy
month on month since joining Best Western.
Through our efforts to support local initiatives and
the Zambian Tourism Board we have managed to
form close relations with the local community and
strong ties to government, which has seen health
support of our conference facilities.
The hotel
is the pl
ace of choice for g
uests
from al
l
around the w
orl
d.
What is the profil
e
of y
our cl
ients? Which mark
ets are y
ou cu-
rrentl
y
try
ing
to attract?
Michael Hunter-Smith started his career at the
Wits Hotel School in Johannesburg, South
Africa. After completing his education, he
joined the then famous Carlton Hotel in the
Sales Department.
After spending 10 years working as an out-
bound tour operator, giving him the opportunity
to travel extensively, he settled in Cape Town,
South Africa, where he joined the Lanzerac
Hotel and Spa as their International Sales and
Marketing Director.
Mr. Hunter-Smith later joined the Best Western
PLUS Lusaka Grand Hotel as the Sales and
Marketing Director and was recently promoted
to Managing Director.
Zambia is currentl
y
seen as a country
ful
l
of resources and opportunities but,
in order
to g
row
it
s al
so necessary
to inv
est.
What
mak
es Zambia an attractiv
e destination for
inv
estors?
Zambia, with a population of 14 million, has a
history of peace and political stability since its in-
dependence in 1964, plus a GDP growth rate of
6% in recent years. The country has also opened
its doors to investors around the world and with a
stable economy and unrestricted limits to transfer
profits after tax, it is very attractive to investors.
Zamibia also offers some good incentives to in-
vestors such as free or reduced import duty on
some raw materials and certain types of machi-
nery. There is also its location, which is central
to Sub-Sahara Africa, its people, who are friendly
and warm hearted and it has a great climate as
well.
MICHAEL HUNTER-SMITH
Managing Director
Lusak
a Grand Hotel
by
Best Western
