Consumers defining fractions market

Consumers defining fractions market
2008/05/22

The fractional ownership market in South Africa is being driven by consumer demands, not by the promoters, and the projects that will emerge victorious will be those that cater for what consumers are looking for. So says co-founder of fractionalownership.co.za and member of the South African Association of Fractional Intermediaries (SAAFI) Working Committee, Dirk Wilson.
"It really boils down to what service levels the South African consumer expects from a luxury lifestyle investment such as fractional. When they arrive at their fractional holiday home at Pinnacle Point or Zimbali they expect a hotel-style check-in, cleaning services and check-out facilities. Everything must be of a very high standard in terms of value-added on-site services - for example, being able to phone down to reception and book a round of golf or organize fresh towels for the morning. They can't just arrive at a game farm, be pointed 2 km down the road, given their keys, and told 'There's your bush lodge, see you in a week!'."
Wilson explains this trend of consumer control further: "There are many resort developers who are looking to do mixed-use developments, and they want fractional to be a component. Undoubtedly the on-site hospitality provider is the most intricate part of making a successful project – those who do not have a specialized hospitality or hotel operator on the resort and don't have the standard of say a Three Cities or Legacy, have to provide an equivalent standard - because this is what the market expects. Many developments just don't have the infrastructure to be able to provide this standard.
"Many leading fractional promoters now are only taking on properties where there is a leading hotel operator at that resort, since the market demands it. Feedback from the recent World Fractional Ownership Conference in San Francisco, USA, is also that by far the most successful fractional ownership resorts in the USA are those serviced by the likes of Marriott, Hyatt Hilton and Fairmont, and the South African market is following suit. It is mirroring what is happening in the USA – where they have 8 years' more experience in this arena than us - and we see it as a good sign that our market is aspiring to live up to that same standard of shareholder hospitality and exchange."
He says that feedback from consumers that have bought fractional indicates is that their experience of top-notch services is the defining factor that really makes their purchase worthwhile. "Fractional ownership should equal shareholder hospitality and comfort – and this is a reality that developers have to face. We endorse this and aim to educate potential players in our regular workshops of what logistics they need to provide in order to roll out a successful fractional ownership resort."
fractionalownership.co.za holds workshops every 2 months – one each in Cape Town and Johannesburg, the next scheduled for mid-June. Says Wilson: "We are happy to assist the developers and service providers. We see many at our workshops that would like to do fractional because it adds value to their entire development, but they have to be able to live up to what the consumer expects from their purchase." He adds that he is now seeing many players from the financial sector attending the workshops – since their clients want to know whether they should buy shares in fractional, a trend once again driven by the consumer.
To book for the workshop or for any enquiries contact Dirk Wilson on 072 591 0582 or 021 556 5064, email www.fractionalownership.co.za or click here to visit the website.
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Consumers defining fractions market