What ’ s Hot : PEOPLE
SONIA CHENG CHI-MAN
CEO , NEW WORLD HOSPITALITY , HONG KONG
WHAT MAKES HER HOT : A US $ 1.1 billion war chest aimed at doubling the 6,000-room portfolio within five years . The new luxury brand in the family , the 19-hotel Rosewood Hotels & Resorts portfolio acquired this year for US $ 230 million , provides instant credibility at the bargaining table .
WHAT SHE IS WORKING ON NOW : Moving toward her goal of opening 10 to 15 Rosewood hotels within five years to ensure continuity of Rosewood ’ s reputation and confirm the company ’ s abilities to grow the business . Five hotels will open in Asia and the Middle East by 2015 , and the regions will remain a priority for the foreseeable future . Europe is on the wish list , as is further expansion in the Caribbean . Overall , gateways are the must-haves . Exotic resort destinations are under study as well . For the moment , most important is the flag ’ s debut in Beijing next year .
WHAT ’ S NEXT : Shaping the next generation , Asia-based international hotel management company with truly global appeal . Cheng , 32 , knows it is going to take money to make money . She is ready with sliver equity for key deals , and the door is also open to strategic joint ventures with the right partners in the right locations . The link to the New World conglomerate enables the hotel company to leverage a huge customer base across a number of business sectors . In addition , she wants to double the number of deluxe New World brand hotels in the next few years via secondary and tertiary cities in China and Southeast Asia . Cheng also has the design-forward and clever midmarket Pentahotels brand , which she wants to grow to 80 properties globally by 2020 . Second- , third- and even fourth-tier cities are on the radar , with potential for cluster development in some markets .
BRIAN WILLIAMS
MANAGING DIRECTOR , SWIRE HOTELS , HONG KONG
WHAT MAKES HIM HOT : Starting in 2008 with The Opposite House in Beijing and then the Upper House in Hong Kong , this art-focused , niche player in the luxury lifestyle segment is competing quite well in Hong Kong and China , and is afforded even greater credibility due to the long arm and financial clout of parent company Swire Group . Williams says the House hotels in Hong Kong and Beijing are each one of the top three RevPAR hotels within those cities .
WHAT HE IS WORKING ON NOW : The next members of the House brand in China are under development in Chengdu and Shanghai coming in 2015-2016 . Swire ’ s other brand , East , is just opening 369 rooms in Beijing , and Williams recently announced an East in Miami at Brickell CitiCentre , marking the company ’ s first foray into the United States . The third brand , Chapter — stylish hotels in the heart of great British towns and cities — had its second opening , The Magdalen Chapter , in June in Exeter , and more are on the way . Swire has acquired a hotel in Bristol and will start to work on the next Chapter in 2013 .
WHAT ’ S NEXT : While Williams is not in a massive hurry to expand , he does foresee further expansion in Asia . Williams is keen on Singapore at some stage . Third-party management could become a possibility as the brands become more established and recognized . “ We have an ambition to make a great ROI on every investment we make , and if we think we can ’ t get into a market for various reasons , we won ’ t go in ,” Williams says . “ We certainly won ’ t go in as a loss leader .”
28 HOTELS October 2012 www . hotelsmag . com