COVER STORY
Feel like family, with ANEW ANEW Hotels & Resorts has boldly stood out for its rapid expansion during a time (Covid) when most hospitality businesses were struggling to simply keep going. Curious to know more about the group’s exceptional growth, Meetings caught up with the CEO, Clinton Armour.
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linton Armour shares that his entry into the hospitality industry was largely a happy accident. His family worked in timber and dairy farming in KwaZulu-Natal before acquiring an old roadhouse motel near Harding in the 1980s. This allowed him a rich learning experience of the hospitality trade. Clinton says, “My father allowed me to learn through doing. I had a lot of freedom to make decisions and gain hands-on experience right off the bat, which is essentially the best way to learn how to run a business. I believe that’s how I learned to become the businessman I am today.” He adds that through this experience, he discovered his passion for the hospitality sector, and he eagerly took over the family business as soon as he was able to.
THE ANEW BRAND IS BORN In 2014, Clinton decided to transform the family motel into a comfortable, mid-level hotel, the Ingeli Forest Resort. The project was a success, and proved he had a natural talent to reimagine and revitalise existing establishments. Next, in partnership with a business associate, Clinton acquired the Protea Hotel in Hluhluwe in 2016. The hotel underwent an extensive refurbishment, adding a five-star self-catering lodge to its existing three-star offering. It was during this period that Clinton realised he needed to create a new brand identity for the upgraded properties. Shortly afterward, ANEW Hotels & Resorts was born. AND THEN, A PANDEMIC Clinton admits that the Covid-19 pandemic posed serious challenges for the business, but he also believes it created opportunities which he was able to leverage. This led to the ANEW portfolio’s growth from three properties in March 2020 to an astounding 16 properties by May 2023.
How did he do this, you ask? “I believe that making informed business decisions requires a delicate balance of calculated risk-taking and a deep understanding of the market landscape. I did my homework, but I admit I have also been fortunate in that these risks have paid off,” he says simply. FAMILY FIRST Another key reason the ANEW brand has thrived during hard times, adds Clinton, is because it is a family business, and the staff are his second family. He explains that this approach to doing business is one he learned from his father; “What stood out most for me and what made my father so successful was how he dealt with people. As a businessman, he was fair, responsible, upfront, honest and transparent. People enjoyed working with him.” Clinton strives to emulate his father in this way, and shares that the HITEC values (Honour, Integrity, Teamwork, Excellence, and Courage) are central to how his company operates.
6 • MEETINGS l SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2023 www.theplannerguru.co.za