“ discovery centers ” for children .
Fasel admits Aman has to better embrace the digital customer acquisition space . “ There , I ’ m playing catch-up a little bit . I ’ m not denying this ,” he says . “ Some of the advantages I have in that world is that I don ’ t need to repeat some of the mistakes the early adopters have made .”
Whatever he does , Fasel says the guest will be at the center of Aman ’ s decision-making process . “ That ’ s one of the things which you perpetually need to remind yourself about .”
Next up for Fasel is the late fall opening of an Aman in Kyoto , Japan , with 24 pavilions and two villas , followed by New York City in the latter part of 2020 .
Fasel says New York will push the Aman envelop with 83 rooms and suites starting at 70 square meters , a 2,000-square-meter spa , a jazz club and restaurants , along with the residential piece . He says by mid-May Aman had sold more than 55 % of the New York City residential space ( 22 units ) in what can be described as a challenging marketplace .
“ It is such a unique building and with us as the operators we should have a little bit more demand then the next guy ,” Fasel says .
Overall , he is excited about the trajectory of Aman . “ We are healthy in regards to strategies and financially in a very good place ,” he says .
Aman Kyoto
“ I STILL HAVE TO OPTIMIZE THE BUSINESS . I STILL HAVE AN ASPIRATION TO REALLY CLAIM THAT SPACE IN ULTRA-LUXURY , THAT WE SHOULD BE THE BENCHMARK ON EXPERIENTIAL TRANSFORMATION FOR TRAVEL .”
ROLAND FASEL
July / August 2019 hotelsmag . com 17