It's not every day that a hospitality brand turns 75, and it's not
every day that a 75-year-old beach resort company goes in search of a
contemporary look and embrace it.
But Jeff Wagoner, president and CEO of Outrigger Hospitality Group,
feels that a brand transformation is clearly in order for Outrigger
Resorts & Hotels to retain its mission of being "the premier beach
resort company in the world".
"As a company, we've come a long way... that history may be [75
years] old, and not necessarily fresh... But [Outrigger] is a very
different company today than it was five years ago," Wagoner told Travel
Weekly Asia on the sidelines of HICAP 2022 in Singapore.
"We wanted to make sure that you could feel that the company had
evolved and that we are really relevant and look more contemporary than
we had been in the past. So a lot of this rebranding is taking on those
elements."
Outrigger Resorts & Hotels has recently unveiled a comprehensive
brand revitalisation that includes a modernisation of its current assets
and expansion of its portfolio with additional destinations.
"We're in a pretty significant growth mode right now. We've added
five properties in the last 18 months: three in Thailand, one in the
Maldives and one on the big island in Hawaii," said Wagoner.
Outrigger Resorts & Hotels is undergoing a significant expansion and transformation, says group CEO Jeff Wagoner.
Some US$325 million have been spent on upgrading Outrigger properties
in recent years, including a revamp of the trio of Thailand resorts
that the company acquired in 2021, revealed the resort chief.
Meanwhile,
the company has earmarked US$250 million to reinvest in its Hawaii
assets, including the flagship Outrigger Reef Waikiki Beach Resort,
Outrigger Kona Resort & Spa, Waikiki Malia by Outrigger and
Outrigger Waikiki Beachcomber Hotel.
As part of the brand revitalisation, the name of Hawaii’s first and
only craft hotel – Waikiki Beachcomber by Outrigger – has been changed
to Outrigger Waikiki Beachcomber Hotel to move the Outrigger brand to
the front of the property name.
But with a portfolio that still weigh towards Hawaii, where the
company is headquartered, is Outrigger looking to beef up its presence
elsewhere in Asia Pacific? That's a definite yes, too, for Wagoner.
In Asia Pacific, Outrigger now boasts a team that's based in
Thailand, which is actively seeking out development opportunities in the
region.
"We
are looking at a whole lot of different locations right now. We would
love to have more properties in Thailand. We would love to be in
Vietnam. We're looking at a couple of different properties in Bali right
now," Wagoner revealed.
"We want to continue to look and identify great beach resorts for the
brand. That is another piece of our company – we are all beach and
beach community; we don't have any urban properties. We will stay very
focused and true to who we are."
Clearly, the hallmark of a cool 75-year-old beach resort brand is also embracing change while staying true to its identity.