Investing in the Exceptional: Creating Enduring Destination Demand

Transcript

Rosa Harris:It's my pleasure this morning to introduce Jackie Doak, Director of Dart Enterprises Limited. For those of you who may be unfamiliar with the organization, Dart is the Cayman Islands' biggest private investor and has a 30-year history with the destination. Investing in financial services, real estate, and hospitality to generate demand. Dart is a key partner for the tourism industry here in the Cayman Islands. Their investment and developments have helped solidify the destination's luxury lifestyle brand positioning. Dart is responsible for introducing the Kimpton and Hotel Indigo brands to the Caribbean. With the opening of Hotel Indigo Grand Cayman last May, the Cayman Islands reached a major milestone as we surpassed more than 8,000 rooms in our stock. In the coming— thank you very much. In the coming years, we anticipate adding more than 600 rooms with 3 current developments underway. Today, Jackie will share more about Dart's plans and approach to development and investment. For more than 20 years, Jackie Doak has been the driving force in creating exceptional places, experiences, and opportunities through her work with the Dart organization and Dart family. It has been a privilege to work with Jackie and her team. Over the years to show the world what makes Cayman so special and deliver meaningful moments and memories. Please join me in welcoming Jackie to the podium.

Jackie Doak:Rosa, thank you for that kind introduction. And actually, as I look at the Cayman Islands: Where Business Meets Paradise, it probably encapsulates what I'm going to talk about today, but if you've read this, I probably don't need to really say anything. But what I will do is I will take a few moments today to introduce the Dart Group of Companies and what we do. We actually really look forward to today and how we can further the collaboration and productive relationship between the Cayman Islands and the aviation industry. We are proud to host the leaders in aviation. And to have you experience firsthand the why behind the— why the Cayman Islands is driving such strong demand for travelers, whether leisure guests, groups, business guests, or returning residences traveling to and from Cayman. I just wanted to say to my friend in the back, I'm supposed to have a confidence slide and it's not moving, so I don't think I have confidence today. So I'm going to work through this. We're also eager to better understand the challenges that you face and the opportunities that we can meet with you on to help realize together. Today I will share with you how Dart, through our investments, developments, and people, continue to be a catalyst and generate demand. We are building on the momentum of our vibrant luxury travel market and investing in many industries that in themselves drive demand for travel. Together, this creates stability and prosperity and drives continued— oh, I'm clicking— and continued reinvestment in the places and experiences enjoyed by our leisure and business travelers. Our history goes back 88 years to a small machine shop outside of Lansing, Michigan, which grew into Dart Container. Dart Container that provides you the cups that lets you walk into a conference room with a hot cup of coffee or to take with you on an early morning flight. Containers that allow you to bring home those leftovers from the meal last night that you just couldn't finish. The red Solo cup to enjoy a beverage while at a picnic, concert or basketball game, and importantly, products that were critical during COVID for our hotels, our hospitals, and workplaces. And when Dart Container innovated to pivot and create protective masks for the frontline workers, that is Dart Container. That is our roots. Mr. Dart moved to the Cayman Islands in the '90s. This is his home, and he has been investing in the island for over 30 years. Cayman is the operational headquarters for Ken Dart and for his investments around the world. We have confidence in Cayman's stability, quality of life, and the ability to attract, importantly, top talent and provide promising opportunities to Caymanians. The town of Camana Bay is what you see behind me, has over a million square feet. It opened in 2006. It has restaurants, retail shops, bookstore, cinema, and water fountains for all to enjoy, whether you are a child or an adult. And we're just about to celebrate our 20th anniversary of Camana Bay. We have a long-term perspective. We focus on long-term growth. We measure in decades versus quarters, seasons, or even years. Dart allocates resources and capital to strengthen Cayman's value proposition across all sectors. Industries we impact range from hospitality, real estate, luxury tourism, alternative investments, Technology, development, construction, entertainment, retail, education, and community initiatives. The island needs— sorry, and all of which drive travel to the Cayman Islands. On the screen here is a picture of the Cayman International School. Cayman International School is a $122 million investment in Cayman's future. In 2006, the first building to open in the town of Camana Bay that I just showed you was the school, which anchored the community. Today, after multiple expansions, the school has more than 1,000 students. And Cayman International School was just recognized as the first international school outside of the US to receive the National Certificate for STEM Excellence from the National Institute of STEM Education. CIS, along with our Minds Inspired and Dart Scholarships, provide the foundation for the future leaders of Cayman. As Rosa said, Dart is Cayman's largest private investor. We develop sustainably and strategically to drive long-term economic stability and growth. The town of Camana Bay, again on the picture behind you, is a center of excellence for Cayman's financial services industry. I realize I'm holding my cup. Cayman's financial services industry. It enhanced the sophistication of Cayman, making it easy to attract visitors and business travelers, but as I said before, to attract and retain top talent. Dart plays a leadership role with Cayman Finance, which represents the Cayman Islands financial services industry, and the Cayman Islands Family Office Association, which attracts family offices like the Dart Family Office to the Cayman Islands. Family offices, as we know, have a small impact, a small footprint, but big impact on our island when they invest in the people and places. Not only do these sectors drive year-round demand among business travelers, but we are less beholden to seasonality because of the financial services and our hospitality. This is a photo of Kimpton Seafire Resort and Spa that is just up the road. We entered the hospitality industry in 2011 when we entered into a partnership with the government that opened a hotel that was since closed, that closed in 2008 as part of an economic stimulus project with the Cayman government in 2008. It was our first hotel that we built from the ground up. It was Kimpton's first hotel in the Caribbean, and it was the first hotel to open in more than 10 years, the last one being the Ritz-Carlton Grand Cayman. Within 10 years, our hospitality portfolio has grown to more than 10 resorts in Cayman, in the US and in Anguilla. We have an active development pipeline and are continually looking at new investment opportunities as well as reinvesting in existing properties. I'm going backwards, I think. Dart is the largest private employer in the Cayman Islands, and as you know, it's all about the people. We have more than 2,000 team members. We have a hospitality training program as well as a partnership with Lynn University to further develop our extraordinary teams. We invest in people, and as you know, we can have amazing resorts and places, but it's the people who deliver the exceptional level of service that make the magic happen and help create memorable moments. An important part of our journey, journey into hospitality has been the engagements with Forbes Travel Guide, the leading authority in travel and luxury. They're an important partner in creating awareness of the destination and inspiring more travelers to travel to those destinations. Dart is proud to have 3 Forbes 5-star resorts managed by 3 different brands. Dart has 3 of the 9 Forbes 5-star resorts in the Caribbean, and we are proud of that. The Ritz-Carlton Grand Cayman, we acquired that in 2017, and since then have imbued it with our placemaking, our DNA. You're here at Indigo, and you would have seen the landscaping and how we create ambiance in places. We really have a strong DNA to make you feel welcomed and special. The Ritz-Carlton will celebrate its 20th anniversary in 2026, and the Ritz-Carlton really ushered in the golden age of tourism in Cayman. And as I look around the room, I see many of former Ritz-Carlton teams who are here but have grown throughout their— Sam— have grown their career into other areas of the hospitality and aviation industry, and that's fantastic because they come from the DNA of the ladies and gentlemen of the Ritz-Carlton. And they deliver exceptional service in whatever industry they go to. During COVID we closed the Ritz-Carlton. We made that strategic decision to close it, and we pulled a lot of CapEx forward so that we were able to undertake renovations of the common areas, the lobbies, the restaurants without impacting our guests over the next 5, 7 years as we would have ordinarily implemented those capital improvement programs. That was a $55 million investment. The Ritz-Carlton was essentially refreshed, and it really catalyzed the demand and came in strong comeback after COVID, our border closure in 2022. The Ritz-Carlton has 3 5-stars for the restaurant, for the spa, and for the resort. The restaurant, which is Blu by Éric Ripert, is the best restaurant in the Caribbean. Blu is the best in the world by La Liste, and Blu by Éric Ripert is his only restaurant outside of New York and is a big factor in driving demand from the tri-state area. And let's not forget about Cayman Cookout, which Éric hosts every year with his friends, which is an exceptional experience in January, and I encourage you to come back for that if you haven't been here yet. As I mentioned before, Kimpton Seafire Resort and Spa was Dart's first designed and developed resort. We continue our investments in our resorts. We are not complacent that they are operating well and profitable. We are looking all the time how to enhance and add to even new resorts, and that is part of our process. Seafire has 2 5-stars. One for the resort and one for the spa. The Library by the Sea has been recognized by the 50 Best as one of the best bars. Seafire has really been the jet fuel, pun intended, driving IHG's rewards business in the region. And Kimpton Seafire Resort and Spa is a flagship for IHG and a huge demand driver for the destination's success. And Hotel Indigo, where you are here today, opened last year in May. With that, Cayman is now home to 2 IHG flagships, Kimpton and Hotel Indigo. It's created, as you can see, a campus between the 2 properties, allow people to move forward and backwards between the properties, allowing people to watch sunsets and have dinner on the beach, either at Bonny Moon or Coco Loba at the Kimpton, or to watch it up at the Pom Pom with its surrounding and just panoramic views of the island that I'm sure you experienced on your stay. And it also gives the island a unique opportunity to put together 2 hotels, both which have amazing facilities, conference facilities, and to really grow the caliber of group business that we can bring because of the connectivity between the 2 hotels. We create places and spaces that exceed our customers' expectation at our properties. We were recently recognized in Monaco as the Ownership Group of the Year at their Forbes Travel Summit. The award recognizes that we have 3 5-stars on 3 different brands: Ritz-Carlton Grand Cayman, Kimpton Seafire, and Four Seasons in Anguilla. And that is a very difficult task when the operators are different, have different standards, but together we're able to collaborate and orchestrate excellence and resulting 5 stars. Attended by the leaders in hospitality, travel, and luxury products and experiences, with everyone we spoke with, airlift and the dynamic economic, geopolitical, and regulatory issues impacting air travel were the topic of discussion. While we focus on extraordinary experiences for our guests at our resorts, we are a strategic investor in hospitality and the islands. As the aviation industry analysts and route planners know well, the luxury market is best positioned to thrive and even grow during turbulent times. The Cayman Islands outperforms in these areas. Cayman is now building on the record-breaking growth in 2023. Dart Resorts were a major driver in the over 8% destination rate growth we're seeing in 2024. When we focus on the exceptional experience for our guests, it is not only arrival at our resorts. It starts when they board your planes to arrive and depart for the islands. Recognizing this, Dart has been collaborating with the government on major infrastructure projects, such as roads and airport expansion projects. Separately, we collaborate with the private sector on education, healthcare, tech, and more. We also create community parks and gathering spaces and amenities for residents and guests. Collaboration with the public and private sector continues to ensure Cayman innovates and maintains its value proposition and drives demand. In the financial services, hospitality, and other sections. We create places. You've heard me say that before. Not just places, but extraordinary places where our teams deliver an extraordinary level of service and where our guests create magical moments and memories. We create these extraordinary places on the canvas of the Cayman Islands, a cosmopolitan canvas of choice. Choice of resorts, choice of restaurants, choice of amazing supermarkets, and activities. We create places and experiences, experiences for our leisure guests, groups, and business travelers. This is— time's up. I should go to my gate and board. I'll be 2 seconds. Experiences for our leisure guests, groups, and business travelers, experiences that start when they see a Department of Tourism advertising about the beautiful Cayman Islands, particularly in the winter, When they board your airline and hopefully a direct flight to Cayman, they see Seven Mile Beach beckoning them as they come down to land. When they clear immigration, customs, and hit the green smiley face for a seamless experience. When they are transported or drive to their hotel and cosmopolitan Cayman unfolds beyond their eyes— before their eyes. When they arrive at the resort, They are greeted by our teams and they immediately decompress and take a deep breath. Experiences that are created throughout their stay as a family or with the new friends that they meet at the resorts. And equally as important is the joyful experiences that they had on our property or exploring the islands, and that those experiences are rounded out with a seamless departure from checking in to unlocking their door at home. And at that point in time, they wish they were back in Cayman unlocking their hotel room door, and they're already planning their return. As I said, as our purpose, we create places, experiences, and opportunities. But what it really means is that we, everyone in this room, creates that, creates opportunities for expansion of our airlift and routes, opportunities for Dart to share our decades of guest data from our multiple hotels on where our guests come from, the key markets where they're ready for additional flights, and the untapped markets that we can drive to Cayman, opportunities for Dart, the Department of Tourism, airlines, route planners, and the financial services industry to collectively share the story and value proposition of the Cayman Islands, creating a compelling reason to visit for work or play. Airlift is our oxygen. We are grateful for all of you and all that you do to bring new and returning residents home to our shore. Again, my time is up. I'm going to my flight. But watch this space, as Dart is not finished creating exceptional places, spaces, experiences, and opportunities. And next time we meet, we may have more to tell. Thank you very much.

Rosa Harris:Thank you, Jackie.

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