TOP HOSPITALITY AND TOURISM LEADERS HEADLINE
SHARED OWNERSHIP INVESTMENT CONFERENCE IN BARBADOS
MIAMI, FL, May 20, 2011 – Interval International, a prominent worldwide provider of vacation services and an operating business of Interval Leisure Group (Nasdaq:IILG), will host a Shared Ownership Investment Conference from May 31 through June 1 at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre in Bridgetown, Barbados. Interval created this event as an educational forum for developers, hoteliers, and lenders interested in various shared ownership business models and has sponsored many of these conferences around the world.
“We look forward to providing an opportunity for delegates to network with industry experts and hear about regional trends and key issues that impact future resort development. We hope to encourage further dialogue about the positive impact that timeshare and fractional ownership can have on the hospitality and tourism sectors,” said Bryan Ten Broek, Interval’s senior vice president of resort sales and business development.
The program will feature leaders in the hospitality arena, such as keynote speaker, Peter C. Yesawich, Ph.D., a widely quoted marketing strategist and researcher from the United States, who will discuss recent findings on travel trends and how they affect the Caribbean. “Demand for leisure travel services is rebounding, and this augers well for the shared ownership industry in the year ahead,” noted Yesawich. “Yet when we finally emerge from the residual impact of the Great Recession, we are going to surface in uncharted waters. My remarks will reveal why.”
Additional highlights include sessions on the timeshare and fractional segments of shared ownership, the state of the industry in the region, development and conversion, financing, sales and marketing, and how a shared ownership component can drive mixed-use success. Also on the agenda is an impressive line-up of regional tourism experts, including Peter Odle, chairman, Mango Bay Hotel; David Rice, CHA, president and CEO, Barbados Tourism Authority; Hugh Riley, secretary general, Caribbean Tourism Organization; and Alec Sanguinetti, director general and CEO, Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association.
Each attendee will receive complimentary copies of the following research studies: Financial Performance 2010 Edition: A Survey of Timeshare & Vacation Ownership Companies (Source: ARDA International Foundation); State of the Vacation Timeshare Industry: United States Study, 2010 Edition (Source: ARDA International Foundation); Economic Impact of the Timeshare Industry on the U.S. Economy, the 2010 Edition (Source: ARDA International Foundation); and Shared Ownership 2010: A Market Perspective (Source: YPartnership for Interval International).
In addition to Interval, sponsors include Baker Hostetler, Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association, Caribbean Tourism Organization, DCP International, Explore Our Isle Barbados Magazine, HVS Shared Ownership Services, Meridian Financial Services, Perspective Magazine, and Preferred Residences.
The Shared Ownership Investment Conference will be held immediately prior to the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association’s (CHTA) Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Conference scheduled for June 1 to 3 in Barbados. A discounted registration fee is available for CHTA members. For more information, please visit www.sharedownershipinvestment.com or telephone 877.700.1153 (toll-free) or 305.668.3495.
About Interval International
Interval International operates membership programs for vacationers and provides value-added services to its developer clients worldwide. Based in Miami, Florida, the company has been a pioneer and innovator in serving the vacation ownership market for 35 years. Today, Interval has an exchange network of approximately 2,600 resorts in over 75 nations. Through offices in 15 countries, Interval offers high-quality products and benefits to resort clients and approximately 2 million families who are enrolled in various membership programs. Interval is an operating business of Interval Leisure Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: IILG), a leading global provider of membership and leisure services to the vacation industry.
