Sharing is a new way to expand!

When Hilton announces that, after "extensive marketing research", it is launching a "Huanying" programme aiming at the Chinese travellers abroad and Starwood relocates its entire executive board for a month in Shanghai to "understand the Chinese culture", French Louvre Hotels Group and Jin Jiang Inn Co., Ltd. announced a strategic marketing alliance covering, at this stage, 15 Campanile hotels in the five French cities most frequently visited by Chinese tourists (Paris, Bordeaux, Lyon, Marseille and Nice) and 15 Jin Jiang Inn hotels in the three Chinese cities most popular with French tourists (Shanghai, Xi'an and Beijing).

Jin Jiang Inn customers will be able to make reservations for Campanile hotels in France, and Campanile customers will be able to reserve rooms in Jing Jiang Inn hotels in China. This reservations process will be facilitated by an alliance of the websites of the two trade names and the sharing of reservation channels.

Based on this agreement, the 15 participating Campanile hotels will also feature the following:

· Each hotel will display both trade names at its entrance

· The hotels will be equipped with Chinese-language brochures and signs

· Telephone assistance for guests will be available in Chinese

· The Campanile breakfast buffet will include Chinese foods and dishes

· Green tea will be available in hotel rooms

· Hotel room televisions will offer access to Chinese channels

Likewise, the Jin Jiang Inn hotels participating in this partnership will offer breakfast buffets that include French products, brochures in both French and English, and telephone assistance for guests in French and English, among other services.

This partnership will also enable Louvre Hotels Group and Jin Jiang Inn Co., Ltd to share management experience and expertise between the alliance's key representatives. Certain employees from both groups will be given the opportunity to participate in an 8-week exchange programme between China and France.

A similar strategic alliance was signed between Jin Jiang and the Spanish Melia International earlier in the year for six hotels in Spain and six in China.

Simple, common sense moves without the media spin of the bigger players.