If 2019 is any indication, the Sandals brand in Barbados is in store for a similar or more stellar year in 2020.
That’s what the general manager of Sandals Barbados and Sandals Royal Barbados Ramel Sobrino hopes will be the case coming out of an unbelievable year where their projections were not only achieved but surpassed.
He shared the comments with a large crowd at the company’s Prestige Awards held at Sandals Royal in Maxwell Gardens, Christ Church last Friday evening. The annual event is held at each Sandals resort to recognise outstanding team members in the respective chain.
During his welcome address, Sobrino said both resorts had over 90 per cent occupancy throughout the entire year.
“[It was] the highest occupancy of two hotels in the entire Caribbean and I am talking about all the Sandals resorts,” he said.
“The Caribbean is performing exceptionally well and the demand [is great] – and here in Barbados we cannot be happier with the year… We are talking about 90 per cent occupancy the whole year and we see the situation as how healthy the business is across the Caribbean. We see the thermometer at Sandals Resorts. We are just growing better and better and increasing in room capacity and in room number all across the region.
“Already for 2020 for Sandals Barbados and Sandals Royal Barbados, we expect a very similar year. I believe we are going to perform even better. Believe it or not, because we did close the year with such unbelievable results, performance and visitors… And the projections and forecasts that we see are absolutely unbelievable,” he added.
Among the night’s top recipients were: the Diamond Team Member of the Year Shanice Seale, the Platinum Team Member of the Year Jamar Payne; the Mover and Shaker of the Year Shimei Browne; the Sandals Foundation Sentinel of the Year Regina Hall, MVP of the Year Dayna Gilbert and the Sandals Earth Guardian of the Year Matthew Parris. Shaquane St Pierre captured the People’s Choice Award and the Engineering department took home the A-Team of the Year Award.
On behalf of chairman and founder Gordon Butch Stewart, Sobrino thanked the 1, 400 member team for their service
“People of Barbados have shown the quality, integrity, the professionalism that is in this industry and I say this in a very secure way. We are so humbly proud here, these two resorts in this beautiful island. These two results have been sending a signal internationally to the travel trade how to manage two hotels full the entire year – flawlessly, with excellent results, statement of quality, our returning clients are coming more often, we have more returning clients every month than ever before and that is a testament of a job well done by our outstanding team members and we are so proud of all of them.
“We’re very proud of all the team members here in Barbados,” he said. (WG)
