The Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) listed company Cresta Marakanelo Limited (CML) has shared a positive outlook for the year, with the company’s ongoing property developments, people driven focus and ongoing community partnerships tipped to contribute to the local economy and boost the company’s performance.
“2023 is a year of consolidation for the Group as the business fully recovers from the effects of Covid-19 and resumes its growth strategy, which will focus on both organic and inorganic growth. Our ongoing property developments and the considerable improvements to our infrastructure is a key avenue in which we will improve our value proposition in the market, and most importantly enhance our guest experience across all our properties,” said the CML Managing Director, Mokwena Morulane.
The extension of Cresta Mahalapye Hotel to add 60 rooms is poised to position the property as the hub of hospitality in the sub-region, cementing the Group’s position as industry leader, with the highest number of hotel rooms in Botswana. The extension also sees the property launch an additional state-of-the-art conferencing facility, which will significantly increase its hosting capacity and enable the hotel to maximise revenue.
“The second half of the year will see us unveil the Cresta Mahalapye Hotel extension and avail it to the market, which will enable us to cater for larger groups for our accommodation, food and beverage and conferencing clientele. This development also allows us, as we grow, to provide more employment opportunities for Batswana, as well as increase the scale of our support to the various local producers and suppliers we work with,” highlighted Morulane.
Cresta Thapama Hotel, located in the Francistown city centre is undergoing a major facelift and room refurbishment, with the renovation of all of its 96 rooms expected to be completed in the second quarter of the year. The construction of the iconic Cresta Jwaneng 50-bed boutique hotel is also fully underway, following the ground-breaking ceremony of the hotel in November 2022.
“At the heart of our strategy for the year we look forward to reiterating our commitment to our people, strengthening our partnerships with our communities, delivering exceptional service to our guests, escalating our sustainability efforts and being kind to our environment. While we are still faced with the COVID-19 pandemic and its associated challenges as well as global geo-political challenges which impact supply chains, rising prices and a general squeeze on consumer spending, we look at 2023 with enthusiasm and optimism, and look forward to making our guest experience a pleasant and memorable one, filled with The True Warmth of African Hospitality,” Morulane concluded.