Dennis Oldfield to Lead Accor's Fast Expanding Hotel Network in India
BANGKOK, 25 July 2005. Accor has named Dennis Oldfield as General Manager Delegate for Accor Hotels India effectively immediately as the company continues its rapid development around the country.
Mr. Oldfield joined Accor in 2002 when Century International Hotels was integrated into Accor Asia Pacific. He was General Manager of Novotel Century Harbourview, Hong Kong from 1999 to 2002 and most recently Regional General Manager Operations for Accor Hotels in Central and East Java, Indonesia.
He takes control of a fast expanding network of Ibis hotels currently under development in India, and the recently signed management agreement for Novotel Hyderabad.
In March 2005 Accor joined forces with InterGlobe Enterprises, India's leading travel and technology management company to invest in and develop at least 25 Ibis economy hotels across India and South Asia over the next 10-12 years. The establishment of an India-wide internationally branded economy hotel network will fill a major void in the Indian hospitality sector and cater for the extra demand that has resulted from a big growth in domestic and international travel.
Development of Ibis hotels is already underway, with Ibis Bangalore and Ibis Gurgaon set to open in late 2006. Other major target cities for immediate future development include Mumbai, the National Capital Region, Chennai and Hyderabad. A site is also under negotiation at Pune and another has been secured at Jaipur.
In May Accor announced the signing of Novotel Hyderabad, which will serve the adjacent Cyberabad Convention Centre, India's largest and first purpose built convention centre. It is scheduled to open in late 2005 followed by the 300-room Novotel in April 2006, both in time for an Asian Development Bank meeting scheduled in Hyderabad for May 2006.
Accor is also actively pursuing other management opportunities around the sub-continent for Novotel hotels in Gurgaon, Chennai, Mumbai and Pune.