Face-to-Face: Eric Waldburger
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Travel Daily chats with Eric Waldburger, president of Marco Polo Hotels, about the company’s new luxury brand, Niccolo, which will debut in Chengdu next year…
Q) You recently unveiled your new luxury brand, Niccolo. How will this offering differ from other international luxury hotel brands in China, such as St Regis or Waldorf Astoria?
Many of the international luxury hotel groups developed to date, take the cookie-cutter approach of their brand and do not match to the needs of their main feeder markets. Niccolo is not a typical large international hotel brand. In China, people want to differentiate themselves from others; Niccolo will meet that need to stay at a new luxury brand that isn’t affiliated with the other saturated, already-known brands. China’s new generation of self-made entrepreneurs and most of the Hurun Wealth Report’s billionaires are sophisticated travellers under 50 years-old. They look well past typical five-star service with a vast sea of anonymity for bespoke personalised hospitality and services tailored to their interests and needs.
We are unique in that we have developed IFS (International Finance Square) as the leading retail precinct in the city, with a new hotel concept that will complement iconic lifestyle retail brands. It will become the signature address for the city’s events. The IFS also comprises of office towers and will house some of the leading corporate businesses of the city, (such as Dior, Chanel, Prada, Givenchy etc) so we will work very closely with corporate and meeting clients, as well as being the first choice for our IFS retail partners for meetings and events. The IFS has provided the base to develop a unique hotel concept that we can take to our other IFS developments throughout China, and beyond. IFS has attracted Fortune 500 companies and captains of industry who will be seeking the individualised service that Niccolo will provide.
The modern day global traveller will be tempted by new adventures in urban discovery, whilst enjoying the timeless pleasures of luxury travel. Niccolo is a perfect fit with travel aspirations of the Leaders of Style. City Insiders will offer a new breed of Concierge service, becoming guests’ welcoming, locally-engaged hosts. Imparting personal ‘insider’ tips, they will be on-hand to help our Niccolo contemporary explorers to the cool, the new, the hip and the happening.
The wedding business in China is still a key market segment and our new Niccolo has the most spectacular glass ceremonial hall to be called The Conservatory which will make it the city’s best wedding and event address.
Q) As a Hong Kong-based company, do you feel you have a greater advantage in mainland China than some of your international rivals?
Marco Polo is already well-recognised by the Chinese market, considered as their best address in Hong Kong; therefore they will be comfortable with a trustworthy brand that understands their needs. The Marco Polo hotels in Hong Kong – Hongkong Hotel, Gateway Hotel and Prince Hotel – are located in the city’s luxury shopping precinct, above Harbour City. Therefore, the synergies with location and luxury retail will be even more advantageous to our four IFS and Niccolo projects as we open throughout China over the coming four years.
Q) What are your long-term ambitions for this brand, in terms of portfolio size and spread?
We plan to open a further three Niccolo hotels over the next three years in Chongqing, Changsha and Suzhou. The launch of the new brand bears testament to Marco Polo Hotels’ expansion plans into the Asia Pacific region. We are bullish about the hotel industry development in China. In particular, we are confident that the Niccolo brand by Marco Polo will be well-received in the market.
Q) Do you have any plans to launch Niccolo outside China?
We will be building the brand in China with our IFS developments and partnering with high-end fashion, before shifting our focus to other regions to accommodate the ever-increasing Chinese outbound market. This strategy is so that we can maximise on our brand recognition within the Asia Pacific marketplace.
Q) In terms of your Marco Polo brand, will you also now concentrate your expansion efforts within China?
Despite the doomsayers, we feel there is still a strong potential for growth within China. On the macro environment, despite the rumoured slowdown, the Chinese economy is much more vibrant than most in the west. China is the second largest economy in the world; its momentum will regain strength in the next few years and we will be positioned to take advantage of the continued growth. Our company is one with long-term strategies as you can see by the IFS developments.
Q) What further developments can we expect to see from Marco Polo in the rest of the year?
This is our most optimistic year of the past decade. Our new Marco Polo Ortigas, Manila, was opened by the President of the Philippines in July and its results have already been phenomenal as the city’s only sky hotel. We will also open our spectacular Marco Polo Changzhou in late August, which will be an urban oasis surrounded by 15 acres of lush gardens and located just one hour away from Shanghai. The hotel will provide 2,000 square metres of indoor meeting facilities, which includes our stand-alone, pillarless ballroom and 17 state-of-the-art multi-function rooms. All facilities feature natural sunlight, complemented by expansive gardens. Finally, Niccolo Chengdu will open early next year.
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