What’s the one biggest excitement for you in a pre-opening project?
The biggest excitement for me is that once the hotel is opened, it will bear my imprint for a long time to come. (Pre-opening work) is also a brand new experience which requires a lot of hard work, passion and commitment, and it is the most fundamental period for a successful hotel.
It is essential for us to get the right people on the team to represent our culture and embrace our vision with passion while presenting our guests with service from the heart.
When deciding on dining concepts for new restaurants, where do you draw inspiration from?
The concept of the hotel’s F&B outlets is influenced by our guests. While our main objective is to maintain authenticity, creativity, and consistency of gourmet selections, we also focus on invoking our guests’ senses by celebrating gastronomy through a unique blend of Malaysian cuisine with a French twist in some aspects, to elevate our guests’ dining experience to a new level.
Are dining facilities in a hotel an important consideration for meeting planners? Why so?
Absolutely. These days meeting planners are seeking tailor-made dining menus, and we aim to deliver healthy and sustainable options as well as innovative flavours.
Our chefs will work with meeting planners to offer a range of gastronomic selections that will exceed our guests’ expectation.
Hilton has named Qian Jin as the company’s first area president for Greater China and Mongolia. He spent the majority of his career with Starwood Hotels & Resorts, becoming president for Greater China, before taking on his most recent position as president of Wanda Hotels & Resorts.
La Residence Hotel & Spa has appointed Huynh Xuan Hanh as director of sales. Hanh has worked with several hotels in Vietnam including Vinpearl, Sofitel Saigon Plaza and Renaissance Riverside Hotel Saigon.
Park Hotel Farrer Park has appointed its director of sales. He has held directorial positions in areas of sales and marketing throughout his 20-year hospitality industry career.
The year 2016 had been a year of big business events for Macau, particularly those hailed from China. Some of these heavyweights include the Tai Hu World Culture Forum with 800 delegates, Herbalife (China) Extraordinary Tour 2016 with 7,000 delegates, Greater China Nu Skin Academy with 5,000 delegates, and Jeunesse Greater China Meeting with 10,000 delegates.
Resort giants on Cotai Strip
In all, there were 905 China business events in 3Q2016, including 257 meetings, 17 exhibitions and three corporate incentives.
Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) expects the number to climb slightly by the end of 2016, although official figures for the final quarter are not out at press time.
In comparison, there were 909 events from China in 2015.
Macau, which is adding capacity for large-scale events as well as major infrastructure and diverse attractions that will appeal to the Chinese market, can expect to see further growth, according to an IPIM spokesperson.
With mega Chinese corporate gatherings flourishing in Macau, the destination now hopes to grow corporate meetings and incentives from China this year and is dangling its supply of high-end accommodation, ease of access from China and the lack of a language barrier to charm planners.
According to an IPIM spokesperson, Macau is seeing great success in this pursuit.
Supporting IPIM’s efforts are revisions made at the start of this year to two existing programmes aimed encouraging business events to head to Macau. Both the Convention and Exhibition Stimulation Programme and the International Meeting and Trade Fair Support Programme now offer an extended deadline for application; introduction of subsidies to finance the planning and management costs for the hiring of local PCOs; and the introduction of transportation subsidies to encourage trade visitors to explore the community.
These revisions, which came into effect on February 21, aim to optimise the application procedures and attract a greater number of international business events to be organised in Macau, thus promoting economic diversification.
The private sector has been keeping busy too, in their efforts to win over more Chinese planners.
Ruth Boston, vice president, destination marketing and sales with Sands China, told TTGmice that its intensified marketing efforts in China’s first and second tier cities have led to significant growth in 2016.
“Mainland China is our number one market, with the majority of business coming from Beijing and Shanghai. There is also significant growth from Chengdu, Tianjin, Nanjing (and Guangzhou),” said Boston.
In 2Q2016, Sands led roadshows into China to promote the opening of its new The Parisian Macao integrated resort, which started welcoming guests in September 2016.
Despite Macau’s expanding inventory of high-end properties, Boston regards the luxury business events market as a strong performer for Sands resorts.
“The incentives market along with the multi-level marketing sector saw growth in 2016, and we are hoping to expand and capture more of this market this year. 2017 is already showing positive growth compared to this time last year,” she added.
Opened in October 2015, the 1,600-key Studio City integrated resort has seen good business from China. According to its spokesperson, Chinese corporate groups are open to using the resort’s unique facilities, and have rented its 300-seat theatre for private functions. The spokesperson said China would continue to be a prime target for business events coming into the property this year.
At Grand Hyatt Macau, corporate demand is rising from China, the hotel’s third biggest source market in 2015 and 2016.
General manager Paul Kwok said noted that corporate meetings delivered the highest numbers to his hotel in 2016. Moving forward, he plans to grow business by courting China Fortune Top 500 companies.
Kwok added that Macau’s plentiful large venues make it attractive for direct marketing companies which tend to lead massive delegations for events.
Also reporting a good year with Chinese business events in 2016 is Tina Lit, director of marketing and business and AGM with CITS, who has seen meetings driving growth.
“We expect a better year in 2017 as the Macau government is strongly supporting the trade with many initiatives like subsidies for overseas meeting groups. And with many new hotels coming online this year, clients will enjoy more accommodation options and room rates will become more (affordable),” Lit said.
Barely a month after Thomas Cook India announced its purchase of Kuoni Global Travel Services’ DMC network in Asia, Australia, the Middle East, Africa and the Americas, JTB Corporation today announced its acquisition of all shares of Kuoni Global Travel Services for an undisclosed price.
The Kuoni Global Travel Services acquisition is a move to bolster JTB Corporation’s ambitions to become a top global DMC, as the partnership is expected to strengthen the inbound business services and increase the market share in Europe.
It will also support the expansion and strengthening of the global MICE services in Europe and the US markets, which is complementary to existing JTB MICE business, the company said in a statement.
Thomas Cook’s acquisition does not include Kuoni Destination Management Europe and Kuoni Destination Management US, which remain in the portfolio of Kuoni Global Travel Services.
Reto Wilhelm, CEO of Kuoni Global Travel Services, said: “JTB is one of the biggest and most respected market players in our industry. Joining JTB provides our company with the best positioned owner, which will help us realise the full potential of Kuoni Global Travel Services.”
Eijiro Yamakita, president & CEO of the European regional headquarters of JTB, said: “Kuoni Global Travel Services is one of the world’s leading travel companies with an important presence especially in Asian leisure and corporate groups visiting Europe. The acquisition offers an excellent opportunity to be a unique operator by gathering the network and knowledge. It enables the provision of detailed services to meet each customer’s needs with high added-value and the expansion of the inbound business.”
In the past few years, JTB has been expanding the inbound travel business to Europe, a major destination for travellers. By 2020, it is forecasted that foreign visitors to Europe will reach approximately 620 million (a 150 million increase from 2010), driven especially by China and Asian markets.
In addition to the Japan market, JTB has enhanced the outbound travel business from growing markets. In February, JTB also bought a 40 per cent share of Panorama Tours Indonesia to grow its Indonesian outbound business and inbound business into Japan.
The acquisition is subject to approval by the relevant competition a1uthorities and compliance with any other local legal requirements.
Kuoni Global Travel Services in a statement says it will continue efforts to be a neutral land operator to work with many companies other than JTB, paying full attention on the protection of any sensitive information.
Barely a month after Thomas Cook India announced its purchase of Kuoni Global Travel Services’ DMC network in Asia, Australia, the Middle East, Africa and the Americas, JTB Corporation today announced its acquisition of all shares of Kuoni Global Travel Services for an undisclosed price.
The Kuoni Global Travel Services acquisition is a move to bolster JTB Corporation’s ambitions to become a top global DMC, as the partnership is expected to strengthen the inbound business services and increase the market share in Europe.
It will also support the expansion and strengthening of the global MICE services in Europe and the US markets, which is complementary to existing JTB MICE business, the company said in a statement.
Thomas Cook’s acquisition does not include Kuoni Destination Management Europe and Kuoni Destination Management US, which remain in the portfolio of Kuoni Global Travel Services.
Reto Wilhelm, CEO of Kuoni Global Travel Services, said: “JTB is one of the biggest and most respected market players in our industry. Joining JTB provides our company with the best positioned owner, which will help us realise the full potential of Kuoni Global Travel Services.”
Eijiro Yamakita, president & CEO of the European regional headquarters of JTB, said: “Kuoni Global Travel Services is one of the world’s leading travel companies with an important presence especially in Asian leisure and corporate groups visiting Europe. The acquisition offers an excellent opportunity to be a unique operator by gathering the network and knowledge. It enables the provision of detailed services to meet each customer’s needs with high added-value and the expansion of the inbound business.”
In the past few years, JTB has been expanding the inbound travel business to Europe, a major destination for travellers. By 2020, it is forecasted that foreign visitors to Europe will reach approximately 620 million (a 150 million increase from 2010), driven especially by China and Asian markets.
In addition to the Japan market, JTB has enhanced the outbound travel business from growing markets. In February, JTB also bought a 40 per cent share of Panorama Tours Indonesia to grow its Indonesian outbound business and inbound business into Japan.
The acquisition is subject to approval by the relevant competition a1uthorities and compliance with any other local legal requirements.
Kuoni Global Travel Services in a statement says it will continue efforts to be a neutral land operator to work with many companies other than JTB, paying full attention on the protection of any sensitive information.
Having seen success in domestic Chinese business events, the Hainan government has now turned its attention to the international market, in particular those in Europe.
Fam trips for potential buyers and roadshows in Europe are part of Hainan Provincial Tourism Development Commission’s action plans, spokesperson Anastasia Yang told TTGmice in an interview. This is in addition to the Chinese province’s first ever participation in IMEX Frankfurt this month.
Ying Sun
Yang noted that it was Hainan’s first independent presence at a tradeshow for the business events industry, as the destination had previously only participated in similar exhibitions under the China country pavilion.
Ying Sun, director of Hainan Provincial Tourism Development Commission, and Fangxu Chen, president of Hainan Provincial Conference and Incentive Travel Industry Association, led the Hainan delegation at IMEX Frankfurt.
Some 20 tourism enterprises, attractions and business event service providers from Hainan were represented, such as Hainan Province MICE Association, Himice Conference Exhibition Co, Hainan Hongrui Exhibition Management Co, and Hainan Tourist Hotel Association.
According to a press statement, Hainan welcomed 60.2 million travellers in 2016, 30 per cent of which were from Europe.
When asked if there were specific segments of business events Hainan was most confident in attracting from Europe, Yang said the government has intentions to win over the full spectrum of events.
“We believe our resources are good for all (types of business events),” Yang said, pointing to Hainan’s range of high quality hotels and meeting facilities, good customer service standards, sunshine and beaches, natural rainforests, rich culture and enticing cuisine as being magnets for European planners and event attendees.
The province is currently connected to Europe via flights operated by 23 airline companies that offer frequent scheduled and chartered flights from cities such as Rome, Frankfurt and Moscow. While not all are direct services, Yang said access for Europeans is easy through other Chinese international airports, as there are frequent domestic flights onwards to the province.
Continued efforts to improve air access from Europe are being made. For instance, the Hainan government was in Germany recently to negotiate with Frankfurt–Hahn Airport for direct flights.
Hainan’s easy access through major Chinese city gateways like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chengdu has also given rise to twin-city itinerary potentials, according to Yang.
She emphasised that combining different destinations with varying appeals could enhance business event programmes, and Hainan’s destination specialists are able to help planners customise something suitable.
The Hawaii Tourism Authority will be hosting its first Experience Aloha Business Exchange Meeting next month to lure more business events from China and Hong Kong.
The five-day programme will invite about 100 event planners and intermediaries from various source markets to view business event offers on its islands, as well as facilitate a one-day business exchange with 75 local industry partners.
Wailua Falls, Kauai
Hawaii Tourism Authority’s director of Hawaiian Cultural Affairs, Kalani Kaanaana, shared that the Hong Kong market thinks of Hawaii as a leisure destination and usually overlooks the destination for business events.
“In fact, we have 10 major markets and each one has a MICE representative,” said Kaanaana, adding that Hawaii offers vast ideas that can complement and enhance any business event experience, such as visiting private islands and volcanoes, or a helicopter ride.
From January to April 2017, Hawaii welcomed 7,000 Chinese delegates on business and incentive programmes, a year-on-year increase of 90 per cent. At press time, Hawaii is due to welcome another 30 groups this year, consuming a potential 11,000 room nights. The groups hail from industries such as finance, insurance, FMCG, direct sales networks, sports and education.
Behind the imposing, Brutalist concrete that defines Zurich’s Oerlikon district lies a surprising secret. While its exterior honours the neighbourhood’s industrial roots, stepping inside Mama Shelter reveals a vibrant, neon-soaked world that is a far cry from its rigid shell
A polished urban retreat designed for business travellers, Hyatt Regency Kuala Lumpur at KL Midtown combines thoughtful design, seamless service, and exceptional facilities.
Ying Sun
Wailua Falls, Kauai
