Rical Hospitality & Management starts operating in North America with the arrival of its CEO Ricardo H Chahade, who left Brazil on the way to a new challenge. A new team begins to be formed in the USA, with the hiring of experienced and training professionals, with the support of the team and partners that operate the hotels in Brazil.
Ricardo Chahade – CEO
- Electrical Engineer, with an emphasis on Electronics (Escola de Engenharia Mauá), holding a graduate degree in business administration (FAAP).
- 25 years of experience in business administration in the areas of Information Technology, Civil Construction and Hospitality.
- Experience in IT and Civil Construction focused on the hospitality industry.
- Vast knowledge of accounting in Strategy, Planning, Project, Marketing, Commercial, Sales, Communication and Leadership focused on Hotel Management and Tourism.
Work Esperience
Commercial Area
- Coordination of all commercial actions taken by the Hotels I manage in Brazil, encompassing leisure accommodation, corporate accommodation and events.
- Hiring and training of a commercial team in the launch of newly-opened hotels.
- Provision of training and awareness to a reception team for them to work in the commercial area with a defined reward plan in accordance with the laws in force.
- Advisory on the negotiation of hotel management agreements with Chains such as GJP, Blue Tree, Atlântica, Nobile, Wyndhan, Accor, Marriot and Best Western.
- Negotiation with Tourism Operators such as Trend, CVC, Viva Enjoy. Agaxtur, Sabre, All Seasons, etc.
- Experience in the business models and consequent negotiation with the main OTA’s such as booking.com, expedia, decolar, trivago, hotel urbano, TripAdvisor and websites such as homeaway and airbnb. Including negotiation on commission payment, positioning, customer loyalty, automation, among others.
- Parameterization and definition of products (room classification) to operate with booking engines in a clear and efficient manner.
- Management of the sales team in the service provided to major customers such as Volkswagen, Fiat, Petrobras, Cargill and Samsung.
Marketing Area
- Experience in strategic planning, preparation of launches and releases, creation of campaigns, preparation of advertising materials and implementation of actions and projects focused on increasing sales, brand visibility and establishment of the company’s image in the market.
- Focus on marketing in the development of smart websites, social media, email marketing, optimization for search systems, booking engine, channel management, result analysis and tracking.
- Continuous follow-up of the appearance of new tools on the Internet that can deliver low-cost exceptional results, such as waze, whatsapp, automated smart chats etc.
- Coordination of a press relations company for Guarujá Convention Visitors Bureau. 2000% return on investment in indirect advertisement in 2017.
- Work with the main online lodging channels renowned worldwide. Definition of procedures and guidance led Hotel Ilhas do Caribe to be ranked 1st on TripAdvisor, resulting in an increase by 20% in booking from such channel.
- Interface with the company in relation to the Tourism in the Region, as a Director of Institutional Relations at Guarujá Convention Visitors Bureau.
Strategic Planning Area and Controllership
- Knowledge of the commercial bookkeeping rules and procedures and, especially, of the rules contained in the Uniform System of Accounts for the Lodging Industry, prepared and updated by International Association of Hospitality Accountants, based on the general accounting principles.
- Preparation of the Business plan for owned hotels and provision of advisory services at hotels owned by third parties.
- Preparation, on an annual basis, of the Budget for the hotel developments and further follow-up of the works performed. Provision of advisory on the preparation for third parties.
- Definition and Implementation of the chart of accounts, including for Reception, Administrative, Governance, Maintenance, Food & Beverages, among other departments.
Negotiation Area/International Partnerships
- Successful partnership with Operator Viva Enjoy, Gol Linhas Aéreas and Operators from Argentina and Chile in 2017, which made possible to market 1200 hotel nights in the Summer months at Vivah Hotel and hundreds of nights at partner hotels. Such partnership is being extended for the whole year of 2018.
- Advisory service aimed at providing support to international investors in the Brazilian market with a focus on hotel developments – financial analyses, Business Plans and high-level merger and acquisition negotiations.