In his opening address to the Forum, which was held at the Nanjing International Conference and Exhibition Centre, Dr Lui Sun-wing, Vice President (Partnership Development) of PolyU, spoke of the importance of collaborating with industry in the pursuit of research excellence. He said he fully recognised the importance of branding in today's global economy and particularly appreciated the timeliness of this event in view of the current financial challenges that the world is facing. Dr Lui Che-woo, Chairman of the K. Wah Group, was full of praise for PolyU and the SHTM because of their outstanding achievements. It was this extraordinary level of commitment that motivated him to pledge his support to the University and the School. Other distinguished guests of the Opening Ceremony included Mr Zhang Ji, Deputy Director General of the Jiangsu Provincial Tourism Bureau, Professor Kaye Chon, Chair Professor and Director of the SHTM, Mr Tang Wenjian, Chairman and President of Jinling Holdings Ltd, Mr Chen Mengmeng, Deputy Secretary General of the Jiangsu Provincial Government, Mr Jiang Hongkun, Mayor of the Nanjing Municipal Government.

In the keynote presentations, Professor Dai Bin, Vice President of the China Tourism Academy shared his thoughts on "The Evolution of Hotel Brand: Historical Responsibility and China Perspective". Ms Lily Ng, Senior Vice President, Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels discussed the "China Hotel Development Trends". Mr Andrew Hirst, Operations Director, Asia, of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group talked about the "Development Strategy in China: Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group". Other speakers included the Chairman and Vice Chairman of the China Tourist Hotels Association.

Prominent industry leaders and scholars attended various panel discussions covering a variety of topics including "Industry Leaders Round Table: Focusing on 2009 and Beyond", "Development Strategies of Leading International and Domestic Brands in China", "Brand Investment: Perspectives of Owners and Other Players", "Developing Different Types of Hotel Brands" and "Developing Future Leaders for the Hotel Industry".

The 3rd International Forum on China Hotel Brand Development recorded a total attendance of 500 participants from around the world. It has truly become one of the most important events in fostering open discussion of development and management of hotel branding in China.