Hotels should plan profitability through branding, technology and a new generation of guest experiences
The Hoteliers Club, a new private hospitality community bringing together hotel company owners, hotel department directors, investors and selected partners from related industries, was officially opened in Zagreb on 19 May. The soft opening was held at the club's headquarters on Marko Marulić Square in Zagreb, with the participation of around a hundred guests and potential partners, and the event demonstrated that the regional hotel scene has long been looking for exactly this format of networking.
As the founders point out, the goal is not to organise another event or a series of events, but to build an active community that will function throughout the year – through networking, education, exchange of experiences and concrete business opportunities.
The Hoteliers Club is envisioned as a selective professional network bringing together key decision-makers from hospitality and related sectors, and membership is possible exclusively through an application and approval process. According to the presented data, the club already brings together several hundred members from six countries in the region, and plans include expansion to other European markets.
The industry did not lack events, it lacked a community
During the presentation, the club's founder, Petar Aračić, emphasised that the idea had been smouldering for years, born out of the need for better connections within the hotel industry. "We all meet at major international trade shows and conferences in London, Amsterdam or Madrid, and even in Croatia at the Hotel Summit - Executives Only, but internally we connect very little, exchange experiences and cooperate during the year," Aračić said.
He stressed that the club's goal is to create a place where hoteliers and partners will continuously meet, talk and develop business relationships, and not just a few times a year at major conferences.
According to the announcements, the club will organise a variety of formats – from executive breakfast gatherings and professional workshops to networking events, cocktail parties and educational programmes. Most of the activities will take place outside the club premises themselves, in hotels and partner locations across the region.
Special emphasis is placed on the quality of members and the relevance of the community, rather than numbers. The focus is on individuals in management positions in hotel companies and the hospitality sector, so that partners and members can establish direct contact with key decision-makers.
Hospitality as an industry of interpersonal relations
In his introductory speech, the President of The Hoteliers Club, Zoran Pejović, pointed out that the hospitality industry is entering a period of major changes marked by artificial intelligence and technological development, but that human relations remain its greatest value. "Hospitality is what happens between the host and the guest. Regardless of the development of artificial intelligence, it is precisely human contact that will continue to make a difference in our industry," Pejović emphasised.
He also recalled his own professional beginnings, when a single conversation opened the door to an international career in the hotel industry, saying that the club should become a place where members will find time for one another, exchange experiences and help without necessarily expecting immediate benefit. "I would like The Hoteliers Club to be a community where we will find fifteen minutes for each other - for a chat, advice or support. If you are here tonight with that mindset, you are already members of the club," Pejović said.
Plans for regional and European expansion
One of the key goals of The Hoteliers Club is the regional connection of the hotel industry in the area of six countries of the former Yugoslavia, which the founder Petar Aračić sees as a naturally connected market due to language, business culture and shared challenges. At the same time, the international expansion of the club was announced, including plans to open new branches in Poland, Slovakia, Austria and Dubai.
During this year, the club will organise several major events, among which the Hotel Summit in Mali Lošinj and a large charity Christmas Party in Zagreb planned for December stand out in particular.
Along with Petar Aračić and Zoran Pejović, advisory board members from various business sectors and the hotel industry are involved in the development of the club: Aleksandar Bogdanović, CEO of Yettel Bank and Chairman of the Advisory Board of The Hoteliers Club, Josipa Pipunić, Board Member and tourism advisor to the Žito Group, Krešimir Dobrilović, founder and director of CARWIZ International, Predrag Panić, Member of the Executive Board of Yettel Bank, Robert Čoban, President of Color Press Group, Maja Borovina Frankić, Board Member of SPEGRA company and Boro Vujović, owner and director of the Opereta real estate agency.
The club's operational team, which will manage day-to-day activities and community development, was also introduced. Alongside the founder Petar Aračić, the team consists of Andrea Škerlj as Chief Operating Officer, Tamara Nikolić in the position of Marketing Manager and Ena Čok as Event Manager.
The organisers state that this is just the beginning of the development of a platform that aims to become a meeting place for hotel leaders in the region – a community where business relationships, education and networking will develop continuously, and not just occasionally through individual events.
