The weak ruble reflects Russian fans from the trip to Prague
Up to 640,000 fans could attend the Prague Ice Hockey Championship. Viliam Sivek, whose hotel company is in charge of the comfort of visitors and participants, has such estimates on his management board. He also sells tickets abroad, but only in one with accommodation. “You can’t make money entering, I have to sell without margin,” Sivek said.
According to his estimates, they will wait from abroad to create about forty percent of all viewers. But so far, the plans are scrubbing mainly in Russia. “The ruble’s exchange rate is falling, so our expectations have not yet been met. But I believe that if the Russians advance to the six finals, Prague will be full of Russians, “said the hotelier.
On the contrary, in February, according to him, a significant interest arose among the Latvians, who were already among the largest drivers in Prague at the championship 11 years ago. “We have a capacity of about sixty hotels in Prague, including my Sivek Hotels,” said the businessman, whose guest house Selský Dvůr is home to Czech representatives.
The company has so far sold about ten thousand tickets abroad. “These are not the numbers we expected. Foreign travel agencies also cut their share in time, “added Sivek.
Development of the ruble against the euro:
We must not upset the guests, we are playing for the future, says the hotelier
In recent days, Viliam Sivek has been devoting all his time to the World Hockey Championship. The bed he moved into the office also testifies to his commitment.
E15: Sivek Hotels is the official partner of the championship. What does it involve?
There is a lot of it. Especially accommodation and meals for all players and referees. We also provide everything for the IIHF Congress, including premium services such as congressman wives’ programs and a coaching symposium. In the Spanish Hall, we are preparing a gala evening with a banquet for world hockey officials. We also take care of journalists, who are accredited over 1,200. And a lot of other things.
E15: How many people will you accommodate during the championship?
Up to twelve thousand. We have not yet done such a demanding event, which would represent the Czech Republic abroad. And we dealt with a lot of interesting things, such as the Women’s World Basketball Championship.
E15: What hotels do you use the most next to yours?
There are more of them, we cooperate well with Clarions, the Imperial Hotel and ParkInn in Ostrava and many others. However, there are still a lot of new requirements that we are solving on the fly. For example, yesterday the head of the Russian team informed us that from May 1 to 7, he needs accommodation for his family, which no one counted. And we have to solve it. Ostrava is already flooded with Slovaks, Russians and Finns, so we are slowly going to the Beskydy Mountains. People also sleep in Frýdek-Místek.
E15: Do you solve other non-traditional requirements of teams?
According to the regulations, each team is entitled to 14 double and eight single rooms. For example, the Russians were required for 51 rooms, in addition to single rooms. This is a big nut for the hotel. The Russians therefore sleep in Kravaře with Alois Hadamczik, who knows Russian clients and Russian athletes very well. But every team has some requirements. In my opinion, the most modest Czechs. I am convinced of that on a daily basis, as the team lives in the Selský Dvůr hotel.
E15: Is it more business or prestige for you?
It is one of the most important events in the history of the Czech Republic that has ever taken place. And my co-workers, of whom there are 150 in the team, are aware that possible mistakes will not only ruin the name of Viliam Sivek, but that they can damage the reputation of the entire Czech Republic. Yes, it is an extremely prestigious matter for me and the whole Sivek Hotels team treats it this way.
E15: Still, how big a revenue increase do you estimate?
I estimate that they will increase by thirty to forty percent. But like I said, there’s a lot more to this. If we manage everything perfectly, we will support the newcomers in the future as well. We must not upset the guests. I therefore want to appeal to all service providers to look after quality. In any case, it must match the prices.
If you look at the hotel portals, the three-star guesthouse sells a double room for four thousand crowns for the duration of the championship. And if the guest gets four pieces of salami for breakfast here, I won’t keep it to myself. We can ruin or improve the future a lot.
E15: How did the Sivek Hotels chain get to this contract?
You know I did a lot of hockey. He was in Sparta, the son of the NHL, I have the 2004 World Cup, the experience I played to win this year’s World Cup. So we were at the birth of this event from the beginning.