Business proposal in an emerging economy
I propose that Hilton Worldwide expand its hospitality business to the Latvian republic. Latvia is a democratic parliamentary republic in the Baltic region of Northern Europe, endowed with a maritime border with Sweden in the west. The country is having mind-blowing nature, large forests, rich and fertile environment, sandy beaches, scrumptious Latvian cuisines and its unique culture. There are a lot of specialist museums and monuments in the country. A lot of cultural activities are conducted regularly in the place. The Latvian Health Tourism Cluster has decided to promote health tourism in association with the resorts in the country. All these attract tourists from the whole of Europe.
According to the Latvian Business Annual Report Latvian hospitality establishments served about 1.8 million guests in 2013 which showed a 14 percent growth over the previous year.
Initially, a single resort is proposed in one of the busiest coastal areas of Latvia. Later, this can be expanded to the other parts as well. Buying land in Latvia by the foreign agencies is comparatively an easier process due to the fewer restrictions. The direct contribution of Travel & Tourism to GDP in 2013 was 2.9 percent. The relaxed recreation that can be provided by the beautiful countryside, the surprising historic and architecture objects and special native cuisines increase its prospects as holiday destination. All the resources are easily available in the country. This justifies the expansion of the initial resort.
The country welcomes foreign investment. Majority of the companies in the country are privatised. Latvia and the United States have signed treaties on investment, trade, and intellectual property protection and avoidance of double taxation, which further act as a conducive factor for the business operations in Latvia by United States.
The transportation and communication infrastructure in Latvia are modernised. The entry of Latvia into the “euro” group, in 2014, makes the travelling to and from Latvia more convenient. A lot of cultural activities concerts, festivals, a major regatta, sports events, and a number of tourist attractions are opened in Latvia that sparks travellers’ interest. Tourism is highly sensitive to financial crisis. But, Latvia’s economy has been recovering strongly since the economic crisis in 2010, and the economy is expected to expand by 4.1 percent in 2014. All these factors encourage the setting up of hospitality initiative by Hilton Worldwide in the Republic of Latvia.
The intensity of export of unique Latvian food products like the Latvian chocolates and Latvian dairy products is found to be comparatively low. This indicates that Latvia is unable to utilise its potential to export these goods. Hilton Worldwide can invest in the small scale enterprise of production of Latvian chocolates and dairy products that export the products back to United States. This will surely increase the job opportunities and will provide recognisability for Latvian food products. The exports contribute to their GDP. In turn, the Latvian food products will add to the menu of Hilton Worldwide, improve its diversity, attracting more customers.
References
“Alfor was the leading company in Latvian tourism, hospitality and recreation industry in 2013”. baltic-course.com. 13 Nov 2014. < http://www.baltic-course.com/eng/good_for_business/?doc=98920> 16. Nov. 2014.
OECD. “Speech of Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovkis of Latvia to the OECD Council, 12 November 2013.” oecd.org. n.d. < http://www.oecd.org/countries/latvia/speech-of-prime-minister-valdis-dombrovkis-of-latvia-to-oecd-council-12-november-2013.htm> 16. Nov. 2014.
