TTG ASIA MARCH 2019
Coming up next in mid-2020 will be
The Clan – a 324-room property target-
ing millennials and tech-savvy travellers
– which is touted as Far East Hospitality’s
(FEH) answer to the “new demand for
hotels that offer an optimal combination
of value for money, quality hospitality ser-
vice, stylish design, and a strong sense of
place”, said Arthur Kiong, CEO of FEH.
“Guests will be treated like a member of
an exclusive club that is reflected through
the hotel’s highly customised services.
These include special privileges at popu-
lar lifestyle establishments, staff members
recognising guests by names and be-
ing served traditional Chinese tea upon
check-in,” described Kiong.
Non-sector players make a beeline
Even non-traditional players are foray-
ing into the lifestyle hotel segment, with
notable examples being Japanese lifestyle
giant Muji extending its minimalist life-
style ethos to its hotel ventures in Japan
and China, and toymaker Hasbro’s plans
to launch a Monopoly-themed hotel in
Kuala Lumpur (see sidebar below).
Another Japanese retail brand, Koe,
has launched its flagship store-and-hotel
complex in Tokyo’s Shibuya district in
February 2018 to bring “stay, fashion, mu-
sic and food” together, Naomi Shinonaga,
the brand’s creative director, shared.
Its “new basic for new culture” philoso-
phy is also reflected in the hotel decor,
which abstains from the use of leather,
fur or other materials from real animals.
REPORT: HOTEL CHAINS 17
Rooms, like Koe clothing, are divided into
four sizes – S, M, L and XL.
Meanwhile, Macau is the staging
ground for acclaimed fashion designers to
showcase their forays into lifestyle hotels.
Legendary late designer Karl Lager-
feld’s creative and modern take on mixing
Sino-Western styles will be demonstrated
in every single detail of the first-ever Karl
Lagerfeld Hotel, creating a completely
Hotel Indigo Bali Seminyak Beach
(Lifestyle hotels are) not so much
a standalone trend but a reflection
of changes in travel taste. Be it in
technology, design, food, fashion
or social media, it’s now about
getting out of the box.
- Bill Barnett, founder and managing
director, C9 Hotelworks
new definition of east-meets-west luxury
while echoing Grand Lisboa Palace’s de-
sign theme.
The Palazzo Versace Macau, under the
creative direction of the renowned design-
er Donatella Versace, will feature classical
style interiors, such as traditional mosaic
and terrazzo flooring, with all furnishings
and amenities supplied by or following
Versace’s stylistic and artistic direction.
Singapore may also soon be home to
a development tagged to nightlife brand
Zouk. Andrew Li, CEO, Zouk Group, re-
vealed to TTG Asia that the group is “ex-
ploring opportunities that will hopefully
come into fruition within 2019”.
He shared: “Since the acquisition (by
Genting), the focus for us is to grow Zouk
beyond the realm of nightlife, expanding
its offerings into the lifestyle realm. The
primary audience we are targeting is the
millennials. We see Zouk’s move into life-
style as a natural progression of growing
the brand by expanding to different verti-
cals, such as F&B, merchandise and more
to come. This fits into Genting Hong
Kong’s vision of cultivating holistic life-
style spaces for millennials to wine, dine
and play.”
Hotel analysts expect such cross-over
brands to proliferate and bloom.
Barnett commented: “Owning the cus-
tomer is key, as you can see from Accor’s
investment into other brands they want to
be in front of consumers’ faces at all time,
or Sansiri’s investments in The Standard
Hotels and Monocle magazine, and (for)
JustCo co-working (scaling) the vertical is
key.”
Rajan added: “We are seeing several
bold entrants who believe they can in-
novate and further disrupt the already
disrupted traditional hotel experience.
We have seen restauranteurs go into ho-
tels like Nobu, fashion accessory specialist
Shinola opening their first hotel and more
recently AliBaba with FlyZoo (embracing
AI technology in collaboration with Mar-
riott International).
“Travellers today are always on the
lookout for something different so I be-
lieve there’s enough room for everyone to
make their mark. To stand out however,
lifestyle hotels have to ensure that they
have clear brand identity, service differ-
entiator and value proposition in their
micro-market,” he summarised. – Ad-
ditional reporting from Pamela Chow,
Julian Ryall and Prudence Lui
W Shanghai The Bund
A hotel with ‘no brand’
Japanese no-frills brand Muji diversi-
fied into the hospitality space when
it opened its first hotels in Shen-
zhen and Beijing in 2018.
Muji is scheduled to open
its first domestic hotel,
in Tokyo’s Ginza dis-
trict, this spring.
“The hotel has been
designed to reflect
our ‘anti-gorgeous,
anti-cheap’ concept,”
said Yasuaki Inoue of
the company’s corporate
planning office.
“The goal is to offer a great
night’s sleep at the right price, to
provide a space that support both the
body and the soul while away from
home, and to connect travellers to
local communities,” he said.
“Travel has become part of our
daily lives. It has evolved from the
extraordinary to the ordinary, from
something in which we participate
to something we create,” he added.
“Muji Hotel is an answer to this shift
in demand.”
The hotel is cooperating with
Muji stores, cafes and restau-
rants “to provide a physical
experience of the Muji
philosophy,” Inoue
added.
Hotel rooms
also provide an
opportunity for the
company to show-
case its products,
which guests can then
purchase at Muji shops
located in the same build-
ings as its hotels.
“The Muji Hotel can offer cus-
tomers an opportunity to become
more acquainted with Muji goods
and services through experience,”
Inoue said. “And we would like to
refer to their feedback to assist
new product development.”
Asked if the company plans to
open more hotels in the near fu-
ture, Inoue said: “No, we don’t, but
the door is open.” – Julian Ryall
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