Paul Nyakazeya, Group Digital Editor 
NEWLY established hotel chain Sterling Group of Hotels is bullish about both its future and the prospects of the tourism sector after the reception it has received on the market.
Sterling operates three hotels in Harare, Mvurwi, and in Bulawayo.
“We are very optimistic of lots of potential business because of the traffic we have received so far at the Bulawayo Hotel,” Sterling sales and marketing manager Busi Siziba told The Financial Gazette this week.
“We plan on opening units in every town and growing our out-catering wing”.
She said the hotel is targeting conferencing delegates and the business traveller.
“We also cater for leisure groups during holidays and weekends,” Siziba said. The budding hotel group has a 14-room and 150-conferencing capacity in Harare, 46 rooms and 80 conference capacity in Bulawayo and 28 rooms and 18 villas in Mvurwi.
“Sterling Group of Hotels is a hotel group born out of 25 years of industrial catering experience through a company called Fresh Delight that does industrial catering,” Siziba said.
This comes as city hotels across the country have reported that occupancy levels are now back at pre-Covid-19 levels following the global relaxation of restrictions that had been in place to contain Covid-19. The global tourism industry was the most affected industry by the Covid-19 pandemic after virtually all governments implemented varying forms of travel restrictions.
It also comes at a time Zimbabwe’s tourism is gearing up for its peak season with the worst now behind it after two years of Covid-19-induced interruptions.
Tourism Business Council of Zimbabwe president Wengayi Nhau expressed satisfaction with the sector’s performance in the past year.
newsdesk@fingaz.co.zw
