Dear „Home Teamers” HSDS,

I have been quiet, but that does not mean I have just been sitting around!

In unprecedented situations you need to take unprecedented measures, so my first task has been to evaluate how we come through this crisis with the least possible damage, and to plan accordingly.

I have no „Crystal Ball” and cannot predict things the rest of the world is incapable of predicting, however I can use good common sense and judgement dosed with enough realism.

In discussions with Silviu and Ghitza, we agreed the most important objective is that when the storm passes, we still want to be here, in a very strong position to carry on what we have been doing thus far. Obviously everybodies good health is the number one, but in my role as „the Boss” of HSDS this means insuring the Company can run, even when the vast majority of our clients have or are closing their hotels temporarily.

It’s sure that this crisis will not last forever, perhaps 2-3 months by which time the worse will have past and everybody in our Hospitality Branch will be in full swing re opening closed Hotels, spending marketing money to make sure that everybody who has been in lock down spends their first vacation in their hotel.

I am in very close daily contact with our most important partners, who themselves have the exact same situation we have….a kind of imposed „stay at home and wait till the storm passes”.

So my plan is based on what we „HSDS” can do during this interval, and not on lot’s of „what if’s or may be’s”.

During the last ten days I have had conversations with all of you individually, everybody, and absolutely everybody has made a large sacrifice so that HSDS can navigate this storm, & be sure, it’s going to be a very big storm, but we will navigate it together!

We (Team HSDS) have chosen different ways of helping to get through the storm, some team members working full time with substanial pay cuts (everybody the same), some team members working half time and also taking substanial pay cuts, and some team members in temporary leave with out pay (of which some actually want to continue to work).

Team HSDS has taken extreme action as a collective to head into the storm prepared, we „battened down the hatches” together.

So in summary, we have a „very solid survival plan”, now we can start to focus on using this „reflection period” to a maximum benefit for us, so that when the storm has passed, we are fully equipped to profit from all the chances their will be in the market, and there are going to be plenty.

I feel very privileged to work with each and everyone of you.

Good health to you and those close to you…..stay safe.

Multumesc Mult!

Adriaan