SIMON YIP, director of marketing for the Peninsula Hong Kong, spoke to Shalu Chandran.
How has the year been in terms of occupancy?
This year we had been doing very well from January to August. We are ahead of budget from last year. Unfortunately the world seemed to have stopped from September. Having said that we still expect to close better than last year. 2007 was a record breaking year for us and this year we will still do better in terms of revenue. We are very close to China – which faced a snow storm, the earth quake, the situation with the Olympic torch relay, the protests and the crisis – but despite all these we will still be doing better than last 2007.
What is in the pipeline for 2009?
We feel the first six months will be affected by the crisis, so we have short term securities to tackle that. We feel the second half of 2009 should pick up and hopefully we will recover through the last quarter. We expect to maintain the same occupancy percentage as 2008 at 73 per cent.
On the operational front, we have instructed all the departments to handle expenses carefully. We ask everyone to save but not at the expense of hampering the quality of service to our guests, however our guests will not suffer because of our saving. We have no plans of cutting rates either. Cutting $100 will not make people change their mind from staying at The Peninsula because we are already very different from other hotels.
Does the hotel see many Arab travellers?
We started targeting the Middle East market about 18 months ago and since then we have seen a steady growth from the Middle East. We see about 5 - 6 per cent of the total mix from the region, compared to a couple of years ago which is a major increase. I can see that the next two years we will invest more into Middle East with more aggressive marketing and working with the media, to create an awareness of the brand. The Peninsula features 14 Rolls Royce extended wheelbase Phantoms, a 1934 Rolls Royce Phantom II, a heli-pad, luxurious suites and a spa. We also serve halal food.
Are you working with tour operators and travel agents in the Middle East?
Absolutely. We found that in the Middle East the best distinguishing channels are through our partners – the travel agents, tour operators as well as the airlines. We have packages and travel tours packages with them.
Are you looking to tap into new markets?
Yes but before we do so, markets like UK and the US are still very key to us even though they are suffering a downturn. New market we are spanning is China as well as Russia and the upcoming eastern bloc countries in Europe. India too, is an important market for us as there is rapid growth for the middle income group.