The Hospitality Industry: Work at the Hotel Embassy and Investment Opportunities in Costa Rica

Abstract

The hospitality industry is one of the most widely diversified in services and employees. This industry spans much more than the hotels that reside in nearly every country and many of the world's cities, it also extends to air transportation, restaurants, and travel services. However, to some the industry does not stop there, but also extends to farmers and steel producers who supply the industry with building materials and foods. It is therefore not surprising that this industry employs more people than any other single industry. This fascinating industry forms the structure for this paper from the experiences in the Hotel Embassy in Quito, Ecuador to the investment opportunities provided by the tourism market in Costa Rica. The Hotel Embassy is a small hotel in Quito Ecuador. While working at this Hotel from January 2002 until May 2002 I learned a great deal about the industry while redesigning and implementing a new inventory maintenance system. At the Hotel I held the position of Assistant Food and Beverage Manager where my general duties were shopping for foods and beverages, handling restaurant related problems, acting as translator, and on occasion solving technology related problems. Although I performed these duties fairly routinely my main project was the redesigning of the inventory system for the Hotel's restaurant. Upon completion and implementation of this system I saved the company a projected several hundred dollars a year. Costa Rica is a quickly emerging market in the hospitality industry, its close distance to the United States as well as the near perfect climate and boundless vacation activities make the country an excellent candidate for investing. This paper investigates several aspects of a feasibility study such as the·economy of the area, the Costa Rican market and the hotel market segment to serve. It concludes that Costa Rica does, in spite of several drawbacks, warrant further and deeper investigation because of the likely lucrative investment opportunities. The opportunities and learning experiences provided by the Hotel Embassy and this project have helped me to better understand myself and my future career goals. I have come to understand a great deal about the hospitality industry, hotel feasibility studies (as well as other business feasibility studies), and job characteristics within a hotel. I believe that all of this has helped to both educate and direct my future life.