São Paulo – The Brazilian Northeast has been attracting the attention of foreign investors, proof of which is the fact that representatives of international hotel chains are going to participate in Nordeste Invest, an event turned to business and promotion of real estate and tourist investment scheduled to begin today (31st) and continue until Thursday (2nd) in the city of Maceió, capital of the state of Alagoas. Among the businessmen is James Erlacher, vice president of Development for the Americas at the Dubai-based Jumeirah Group.
“We began approaching the Gulf countries starting last year. The Arabs have shown interest in investing in Brazil,” stated the president of the Association for the Development of Real Estate and Tourism in Northeastern Brazil (Adit), Felipe Cavalcante, who travelled to Dubai last year. “The Jumeirah (Group) has strong interest in investing in the country,” said the president, who mentioned the direct flight by Emirates Airline as a facilitator for closer ties between the two countries.
According to him, the Middle Eastern market holds great potential for Adit. “Dubai is suffering with the crisis right now, but we are going to seek investors in Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and other countries in the region,” said Cavalcanti. “These companies must seek alternatives in order to continue expanding,” he asserted.
In spite of the crisis, the Jumeirah Group, which owns seven-star hotel Burj Al Arab, has envisioned opportunities in the Americas for proceeding with their strategy of becoming the largest luxury hotel chain in the world, so much so that Erlacher was appointed the vice president of Development for the Americas in January. According to information supplied by the group, two hotel projects are currently being implemented by the Arab company, one in the US Virgin Islands, and the other in Argentina.
In order to discuss the group’s plans in Brazil, Erlacher is going to give a lecture during Nordeste Invest conference “The plans of international hotel groups for Brazil,” due Wednesday. In addition to him, other international groups are also going to discuss their plans, such as the United States-based West Paces Hotels Group; the Canadian Four Seasons; the Banyan Tree Hotels & Resorts, from Singapore; among others.
According to Cavalcante, the profile of foreign investors in the Northeast is changing. “Up until last year, foreigners wanted to buy plots. Now, they are seeking partnerships with local companies to carry out real estate and hotel projects,” he stated. Another change that has taken place concerns the origin of these investors, who up until last year were mostly from European countries such as Italy, Portugal, Spain and Sweden. “This is the first time that we have sensed such strong interest from the North-Americans. In all previous editions of Nordeste Invest, European investors had massive presence,” he added.
The growing interest in the region, according to Cavalcante, is confirmed by a survey conducted by the Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate (Afire), according to which Brazil is the second best destination for investment in the real estate sector. “Taking this new reality into consideration, Nordeste Invest 2009 is taking place at an adequate moment for Brazilian businessmen to be able to meet with these investors in order to close deals, which should bring excellent results to the northeastern economy,” he claimed.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum