PROFILE
By CHLOE RILEY , ASSOCIATE EDITOR
The biggest crime you
T can commit , according to Markus Engel , is ignoring the opportunity in hospitality to create true “ hostmanship ” — what Engel defines as “ returning to the origins and the roots of luxury hotel travel .”
“ It happens on two different levels ,” says Engel , CEO and co-founder of Shanghai-based Urban Resort Concepts , a luxury hotel management company launched in 2009 and steeped in the foundations of Asian hospitality .
“ One is the emotional and personal level in the interaction between our staff and our guests ,” he says . “ We put a lot of time ( and ) training effort into empowering people in the true sense of being able to make decisions right there and then to create a relationship that ’ s much more personal , more intimate , more engaging , more generous , in which every member of staff really is a custodian of each of our guest ’ s experience at the hotel .”
The second level means eliminating much of the bureaucracy , or as Engel refers to it , “ petty charges ,” in the luxury guest experience , and instead offering a complimentary minibar , breakfast , nonalcoholic beverages and internet , among other perks .
But this isn ’ t just about giving some freebies to a higher-end clientele . According to Engel , it ' s a fundamental and critical shift in luxury trends .
“ I think that it is a major issue in our industry that we ’ ve not understood and embraced — that luxury goods consumer behavior has changed dramatically ,” he says . “ People are well-prepared to pay a premium in return for having a hassle-free
THE ‘ BRAND ANTI-CHRIST ’ MARKUS ENGEL with the
MARKUS ENGEL , URBAN
RESORT CONCEPTS , FOCUSES ON THE FUNDAMENTALS .
50 hotelsmag . com April 2019