United Kingdom
United States
Asia Pacific
Q and A with Clare Chiu, director of business development, Warwick International Hotels.
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Q: What qualities are hotel-goers seeking? Q: How do you differentiate or position yourself for guests? |
A: We have signed a management contract in Jordan, on the Dead Sea and the Warwick Winter Valley Hotel Resort & Spa, which will open at the beginning of next year.
In addition, we also have other projects in the pipeline and we shall be announcing these projects in the next few weeks.
Q: Why there and not somewhere else?
A: We see a lot of opportunities in the Middle East because we get a lot of guests in our hotels in Europe from the Middle East region. They really like the Warwick brand and we have been fortunate to be able to find a strong local partner in the region to work with – we have formed a joint venture with one of the largest real estate companies in the Middle East and shall be looking for more management contracts together. The Middle East is still very much an unsaturated market where you can still find good opportunities.
Q: What is the current health of the hotel biz in various areas of the world?
A: In North America, the global economic climate is definitely challenging with a lot of uncertainties ahead. The global imbalances still remains a big issue hovering over our heads. Our hotels have been fortunate enough to maintain high occupancy rates and prices without compromising our rates thanks to a surge in domestic travelers.
Q: And in Europe with the debt crisis?
Q: And Asia-Pacific?
A: Asia-Pacific has enjoyed high levels of growth in recent years. Our hotels in the Pacific have seen an increase in Australian travelers. Australia’s economy has been strong in recent years, partly due to strong Chinese demand for their natural resources. The trend is that our guests are seeking higher quality products at good value and we expect this trend to continue. This is a region where we are expanding. For South East Asia, we’ll be opening a second resort in Koh Samui early next year and we aim to complement our 3 hotels in Thailand with more hotels in Laos and Cambodia. Last but not least, the Middle East: as said previously, we see a lot of opportunities there. Our first hotel in the region will be opening very shortly thanks to a strong partnership we’re building with a local partner, we’ll aim to develop our network in the Middle East in the next years.
Q: Any roadblocks you anticipate to future growth?
A: I think the main challenge is the global economic uncertainties that lie ahead.
We’re looking closely at how the governments are trying to work together to resolve and deal with these issues. The outcome of these challenges will determine the extent to which growth might be hindered.
Warwick International Hotels (WIH) was founded in 1980 with the purchase of the Warwick Hotel in New York by Richard Chiu, Warwick International Hotels founder & president. Since then, WIH has expanded rapidly, establishing a reputation for combining local characteristics with attentive service to its clients in elegant and luxurious settings. There are now 50 Warwick International Hotels and Resorts on five continents.
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