Hutchison Whampoa began investing in Hong Kong property
developments more than 30 years ago. Since then, the
company has matured into a major player in the industry
today. And it was just under three years ago that Hutchison
formed a joint venture with Cheung Kong (Holdings) Ltd to
create The Harbour Plaza Hotels & Resorts. In the area
of hotel investment, the group has room to grow. Although
still in its infancy, Hutchison would have opened a total
of seven city hotels and resorts in Hong Kong, mainland
China and the Bahamas by the end of this year. Two more new
city hotel projects for Hong Kong and mainland China are
underway for completion next year. In this crawl-to-run
race to compete against other major city and resort hotel
brands in the business, who has time for details?
Apparently, the thinkers behind the "Our" brand of hotels
do. The new 1,350-room Bahamas resort, a US$400 million
project due to open in December this year, is the first
"Our" property for the hotel group. Named "Our Lucaya", the
new resort stretches along the beaches of Grand Bahama
Island, a well-known eco-tourism destination. What does
"Our" mean? To Eric Waldburger, chief executive officer of
Harbour Plaza Hotels & Resorts, "It's a whole new
approach to hotels. It's all about interaction, vibrancy,
connecting, sharing and getting totally involved. "You as a
guest can share in our experience. If you want, you can go
with the chef and cook with him. We are not asking people
to get involved; we are creating the environment where
people naturally want to get involved." According to
Waldburger, the "Our" concept is about working with a
culture that is already there and blending into it. To take
it one step further, the idea is to immerse the hotel into
the culture so that it sits comfortably with the locals and
visitors alike. "We have no assistant manager or GRO (Guest
Relations Officer)," Waldburger says. "We have what we call
the "Experience Manager". "If a guest issues a complaint,
they can call on one person, the experience manager, who
will run for you and find the person who can fix the
problem. We also hire people who have extra-curricular
talents. "We see this as a positive way for our staff to
use that added talent to entertain the guests. If
housekeeping wants to sing while making up the beds, then
great. We also provide intense training programmes which
are of the looking after people type, not technical
training." But will this philosophy work in Asia?
Waldburger seems to think it will. "The "our" brand
property could work anywhere, even in Asia where people are
more reserved. "If you create that feeling and you're
inundated, regardless of whether you are an introvert or
extrovert, you will be so comfortable that you will want to
come out of your shell. "We won't create an annoying
atmosphere; we will create one that will flow into your
daily routine. In each place we go, we will have to find
the culture of the brand and find the right people to fit
into it. Our Lucaya is the test." The hotel group is not
divulging where the next "Our…" property will be developed
and when, but says it is "very meticulous in assessing each
opportunity."