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2003 European GOLF Investment and Real Estate Conference & Exhibition
Brief event description
Dates:
November 28 & 29, 2003 This important pan-European industry event was organised by INV International Ltd., an international event organiser and provider of investor intelligence, and held in partnership with the U.S. Commercial Service (USCS), under the auspices of the Association of Greek Tourist Enterprises (SETE). INVgolf's 2003 European GOLF Investment and Real Estate Conference & Exhibition in Athens was attended by high-level delegates...
...from the following 17 countries (in alphabetical order):
Conference objectives & focus Among other areas, this exciting pan-European event focused on:
Emerging European markets
Russia Not so long ago, golf in Russia was regarded as a novelty rather than a serious professional sport. But that perception has changed in the past few years and Russians have begun to discover the pleasures of the ancient game. Mr. Konstantin Kozhevnikov, president of the Russian Golf Association (RGA) and a former wrestler, has a plan to build 500 golf courses in Russia in the next 15 years. "It's a realistic figure, based on our projections in developing golf in Russia," Mr. Kozhevnikov told Reuters in an interview. "When people say it's impossible to cultivate golf here because of long Russian winters, I tell them to look at Sweden. They're a northern country just like us, yet they have more than 450 golf courses, while neighbouring Finland has about 180." He wants to see the number of young Russians taking up the game increasing from 5,000 to half a million in the next 15 years and points to the 15-year-old Anastasia Kostina, who finished second at the junior French Open in 2003. [more...] Source: Reuters. Turkish golfing delight
Leading experts, entrepreneurs and decision-makers share their views... Key business representatives, investors, industry leaders, policy formers and decision-makers from throughout the European Union and the virtually untapped surrounding markets of Central & Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean rim attended the INVgolf forum in Athens. The forum's participants and keynote speakers also came from the USA, Australia, South Africa, the Middle East and other parts of the world. Read some of their views below... "In our view, there are several countries, particularly in Southern Europe, that remain on the periphery with regards to golf tourism and golf real estate investment. The golf market in Europe is maturing and the demand for golf as a lifestyle is ever increasing. We look forward to bringing our international experience to assist where possible, as a catalyst for investors or government agencies to promote the golf industry in these exciting new locations. Our head of European Operations, Paul Dellanzo, will be actively involved in this new and exciting conference." -- Dana R. Garmany, Chairman and CEO, Troon Golf , USA "There could be no other opportune time to hold such a conference given the uncertainties facing the real estate and construction industry, and the Greek economy in total, following the 2004 Olympic Games. There are fears that private investments especially in the Real Estate field will dramatically slow down after the Athens 2004 Olympics. Golf and Real Estate, a growing sector in Europe and a new starter in Greece, will be key elements in maintaining the economic growth experienced prior to the Games, while at the same time establishing a long-term viable solution to year round tourism in the otherwise seasonal industry in the Mediterranean." -- Napoleon Tsanis, CEO and President, Albatross Investments and Developments, Greece / Australia "Golf is one of those land-uses that should be labelled 'handle with care'. It has a considerable amount to offer the developer, but needs to be thoroughly understood, from both a physical planning and economic perspective. Done well, golf has the potential to raise a multi-component project well above the sum of its parts, but can just as easily place a heavy burden on a resort's consolidated performance. I am therefore delighted that this conference is being held to explore some of the key issues that developers, investors and operators need to consider." -- Ben Martin, Senior Associate, Economics Research Associates (ERA), United Kingdom / USA "We anticipate that the two-day event will bring some of Europe's leading industry figures together, and help to fast-track golf development throughout the continent. The real estate sector is one that has yet to be fully realised within Europe -- especially in the UK -- and we hope that the conference will help drive the concept that golf and property development can successfully work with one another. I anticipate that at least 20 per cent of all new courses constructed across Europe will involve some degree of real estate, and provided that the courses and property are designed in total harmony with one another, support the concept totally." -- Michael Lenihan , Publisher, Golf Management Europe, the leading business magazine for the pan-European golf industry, United Kingdom "Golf courses combined with real estate projects are a controversial subject in the majority of Europe and the dogged resistance and complicated procedures required to obtain building permits can be quite draconian. Obviously the protection and enhancement of the environment and the harmonious integration of the real estate and golf course into the surrounding landscape is of prime importance. The timing and significance of this conference is vital and could not have happened at a better time as it seeks to address some of the most important and contentious issues which will hopefully minimise and clarify the many erroneous misconceptions surrounding such developments. The outcome of this conference will be extremely important to our members especially as it will influence opinions and directives as well as create new opportunities." -- Peter Harradine, former President, European Institute of Golf Course Architects (EIGCA) "Golf business is people business. You need to know the market and to keep the golfing customer satisfied in order to make your golf course profitable." -- Dr. Falk Billion, independent golf course appraiser and co-founder, German Golf Course Owners Association, Germany "I am delighted that this conference has a focus on emerging golf markets. Mainly due to the fact that golf as a sport was banned during the socialist time, most of the Central & Eastern European (CEE) countries have a very low level penetration of the game. Golf has only had the chance to properly develop after 1989. However, KPMG continuous research confirms that as a result of the rises in disposable income, golf is forecasted to experience continued growth in CEE. This will also occur through television coverage, successful organisation of tournaments and a greater proliferation of courses. In certain countries, like Hungary for example, where there are currently eight golf courses but many more are in the planning or construction phase, the number of golfers is expected to increase during the next 10 years at an average annual rate of 25%." -- Dr. Andrea Sartori, Partner, KPMG Travel, Leisure and Tourism Group CEE, Hungary "Turkey is on the way of becoming a renown golf centre where players from around the world can meet in an environment full of cultural, historical and natural beauties. This Conference in Athens is organised in such a time that exactly matches the new wave of investments which we expect to start." -- Oktay Varlier , Chairman, Turkish Tourism Investors Association (TYD), Turkey; tourism is the fastest developing sector in Turkey "Europe's population is aging and people's money is heading South [Southern Europe]. That's what makes the residential tourism industry a great opportunity for Southern European and Mediterranean countries, and especially for Greece. The development in Spain and Portugal has saturated. The new, potentially emerging markets in Southern Europe are Cyprus, Turkey and Greece." -- Yiannis Papadomarkakis, Publisher, RE+D (Real Estate and Development) magazine, Greece "This Golf conference offers a long awaited opportunity to kickstart a market of at least 200,000 tourist golfers in Greece." -- Dr. Aris Ikkos, General Manager, JBR Hellas Ltd. "We are very excited about this pan-European conference & exhibition and are delighted to present two highly attractive golf & real estate investment and development opportunities at the conference. We look forward to meeting industry leaders, investors, developers, consultants and other high-level executives from Europe, North America and elsewhere at this important international industry event." -- Michael Vranas, President, The Crete Golf Club; attorney; co-owner, Robinson Club - Lyttos Beach; he has been the visionary moving force in opening the way for The Crete Golf Club and the new era of golf development in Greece "Greece is missing out of billions -- not drachmas, not dollars, but pounds. That's an awful lot of money." -- Alan Egford, National Coach to the Hellenic Golf Federation and member of the PGA of Europe and R&A Conclave of Missionaries, Greece / Bulgaria "The creation of housing developments will encourage medium and high income earners to live permanently or part time in Greece, thus creating a new income source through an emerging golf industry." -- Alex Hillston, Conference Director; Vice President, Albatross Investments and Developments, Greece "Golf real estate and resorts have become major factors driving property development in the United States, Spain and Portugal. Greece can be the destination for teeing off and not just coming for summer activities such as swimming and sailing. Greece has all the prerequisites for the great game of golf to be played all year round." -- Dr. Stratos Papadimitriou, Chairman, Hellenic Centre for Investment (ELKE), Greece "Croatia and other countries in South-East Europe provide significant opportunities for tourism development," explains Mario. "As an important market driver, golf resorts will certainly benefit local communities in terms of higher tourist traffic and higher revenues. Bearing in mind the high seasonality of business in the Mediterranean countries of South-East Europe, golf development should also help extend the season to the spring and fall. On the other hand, the investors may earn returns by developing golf resorts in the markets that are viable but do not have any golf resorts, thus earning the first-mover competitive advantages." -- Mario Seric, MBA, Partner & Senior Consultant, Horwath Consulting Zagreb, Croatia
Timeshare and Golf -- A Winning Combination "I'm very honoured to participate to this great event which combines golf and vacation ownership. The timing couldn't be more appropriate and the subject as well as both industries are currently living an incredible growth in popularity. Golfing is already a consistent part of the vacation ownership offer and a fast growing portion of RCI's 3.3 million world-wide timeshare owners are searching and demanding for accommodations which merges the desire of vacationing with the pleasure of golfing." -- Fabio Locatello , VP & Regional Managing Director, Southern Eastern Europe, Resort Condominiums International, LLC (RCI), Italy / USA "This conference has impeccable timing for the vacation ownership / timeshare industry. Golf is recognised as a key component in many vacation ownership developments and some of the leading golf courses in Europe either have or are actively considering adding a timeshare element to their resort. Vacation ownership as an alternative to owning a second home is increasing in popularity and the provision of first class golf facilities is one of the preferred vacation activities for Interval International's 1.5 million timeshare owning member families around the world... In surveys commissioned by Interval International with members and potential timeshare owners, golf is always high on the list of preferred pastimes during vacations, with around 15% of potential purchasers indicating that they would prefer a golf course in proximity to their resort." -- Lyssandros Papatheofilou, Regional Director, Greece and Cyprus, Interval International, United Kingdom
Further information For further information,
please contact
Peter Michel Heilmann, Useful link INVgolf Industry Intelligence Report
Introduction
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