TTG ASIA MARCH 2019
REPORT: HOTEL CHAINS 16
New lifestyle in making
Lifestyle hotel brands are an emerging trend in Asia’s hospitality sector, as hospitality operators big and small
and even players from outside the field roll out new brands to accommodate the changing preferences of
millennials and Gen Z. Xinyi Liang-Pholsena checks in on the new trend
137 Pillars Suites & Residences in Bangkok
The rise of a millennial generation and
Airbnb have unleashed many changes in
the global hospitality sector, with hospi-
tality players recognising the need to offer
more than just a hotel room but a lifestyle
experience for today’s travellers.
Enter lifestyle hotels, a trend that is
gaining popularity among global travel-
lers and the hospitality sector alike, with
most major hotel companies having
jumped onto the bandwagon to launch
new brands that are ostensibly targeted at
the millennial demographic.
A CBRE report defines a lifestyle hotel
as one that has many of the characteris-
tics of a boutique hotel, with a strong em-
phasis on being creative and innovative,
in addition to having the potential to be
replicated and rolled out across the globe.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts’ W Ho-
tels was widely accepted among industry
practitioners as the first mainstream life-
style hotel when the brand was launched
in New York in 1998. Similar brands and
concepts have since popped up in the US
and Europe, and Asia is now beginning
to see the proliferation of lifestyle hotel
brands too.
“Most international hotel operators
have started rolling out their lifestyle
concepts in a significant way”, said Sashi
Rajan, senior vice president - strategic ad-
visory and asset management, Asia at JLL
Hotels & Hospitality Group, attracted by
Asia’s large millennial base which are ex-
pected to make up a strong potential mar-
ket for lifestyle hotels.
Marriott’s Aloft, Hyatt’s Andaz and In-
terContinental Hotels Group’s Indigo are
clear examples of hospitality giants’ foray
into Asia’s lifestyle hotel space, noted Ra-
jan, while international boutique brands
like The Standard, SBE, Dream Hotels and
ACE have either expanded or announced
their intentions to venture into the region.
What comes after W
But lifestyle hotels are not an entirely new
phenomenon for Asia, industry watchers
pointed out.
“You can call it LAW or Life after W,”
Bill Barnett, founder and managing di-
rector of Phuket-based C9 Hotelworks
said. “W was a game changer, but in Asia
groups here already know hospitality so
the development of groups like Alila, Up-
per House, etc, have cut the institutional
mold,” opined Barnett.
“In Thailand, 137 Pillars, Sala and
Burasari are all expanding their non-
standardised approach to good success.
Indonesia is another exciting space – Ar-
totel is one and Potato Head with Katama-
ma and other new offerings in the works.”
Barnett added: “Design and lifestyle
hotels are now across most Asian mar-
kets and strong performers but it’s not so
much a standalone trend but a reflection
of changes in travel taste. Be it in technol-
ogy, design, food, fashion or social media,
it’s now about getting out of the box.”
Major hospitality companies in Thai-
land have also joined the lifestyle fray.
Onyx Hospitality Group entered into a
partnership with UK-based Yoo Hotels &
Resorts to grow its footprint into the life-
style hotels segment, with the first two Yoo
Asia hotels expected to open in Phuket
and Bali in 2019.
Dusit International has unveiled Asai,
its “millennial minded” brand which has
already found management contracts
inked for properties in Bangkok, Cebu
and Yangon.
Singapore has been a hotbed of activity
for lifestyle hotel brands in recent years,
including M Social, whose eclectic and
playful style was the brainchild of famed
designer Philippe Starck; and Yotel, a cap-
sule-style hotel which appeals to tech and
design fans with its guest service robots
and futuristic Tron-like aesthetics.
Building a Monopoly
The world’s first Monopoly-themed
hotel will open in Malaysia in
2Q2019 as the 270-key
Monopoly Mansion by Si-
rocco, Kuala Lumpur,
taking its inspiration
from the famous
board game by
Hasbro.
Lea Chan, CEO
of Sirocco Hospital-
ity Group, comment-
ed: “When we came
across Hasbro two
years ago in Las Vegas, we
instantly knew this was the right
brand to collaborate with. We went
through their brand identity and
we realised that Monopoly can be
turned into an elegant product, so
we decided to make Mr Monopoly
the subject.
“Mr Monopoly, a fictional
character from the board game,
is a well-travelled man who loves
to explore life. Thus the hotel and
brand is designed for guests to
experience the fabulous lifestyle of
Mr Monopoly by visiting his mansion,
which will also take them back to
the nostalgic Roaring 1920s,
for an elegant ‘Gatsby’
experience.”
Monopoly Mansion
will comprise 14 guest
room floors, with each
floor featuring traits
of a particular country
that Mr Monopoly had
visited, Lea shared.
“However, we don’t
plan on taking too much of
the Monopoly brand and placing it
everywhere in the hotel. We just want
‘a kiss of the brand’. The important
thing is to understand the brand DNA
of Monopoly and find those interest-
ing nuances in amazing and creative
ways, which will delight guests.”
The property will be operated
and managed by Sirocco Hospitality
Group, the hospitality arm of Malay-
sia property developer M101 Hold-
ings. – S Puvaneswary