Alexander Biba, President of Cosmos Hotel Group, took part in the Leader's Strategy Forum.

Alexander Biba, President of Cosmos Hotel Group, spoke at the First International Franchising Forum "Leader's Strategy" in the session "High-check Franchising: from one Brand to an Ecosystem. The economy of impressions and franchising".

The discussion was moderated by Ksenia Sobchak. Vladimir Larionov, General Manager of the Fairytale Baths Alliance, Alexey Vasilchuk, restaurateur and owner of Vasilchuki Restaurant Group, and Dmitry Levitsky, President of HURMA Group of Companies, also took part in the discussion.

The session participants discussed key business development challenges in the impressions economy segment, including scaling concepts with a high proportion of unique user experiences, the possibilities and limitations of franchising in such models, as well as the transformation of customer expectations and the impact of the digital environment on impression formation. Special attention was paid to the issue of the balance between product standardization and preserving the "spirit of the place", as well as the role of service and infrastructure in generating repeat demand.

During the discussion, Alexander Biba noted that the hotel market retains a steady interest in the franchise model, despite the complexity of the macroeconomic environment.

"Tourism and the hotel industry are currently one of the most dynamically developing segments of the economy. According to the preliminary estimate of the Ministry of Economic Development, the share of tourism in GDP by the end of 2025 increased to 3.1% from 2.8% in 2023. Active development of the tourist infrastructure continues in the regions: hotels, resorts and related facilities are being built. Cosmos Hotel Group alone currently has more than 80 projects in the regions under implementation and at various stages of construction, and about 40% of them are implemented using the franchise model," he stressed.

According to him, the demand for a franchise in the hotel business primarily persists in projects with a clear economy, a well-chosen location and a request to connect to the federal sales system, service standards and operational support. The formats of urban hotels and apartment hotels remain the most in demand, where the owners are focused on long-term profitability and improving management efficiency.