Minor Hotel Group aims for scale in expansion

MINOR Hotel Group is focusing on building its footprint within Asia, Africa and the Middle East with a key focus on expanding city properties, said William Heinecke, CEO and chairman of Minor International.

While the company last December announced plans to double its size within five years, it currently does not intend to move into traditional western markets.

“Growth for us is international now,” said Heinecke. “We’re already the largest hotel company in Thailand. But we’re remaining focused. We’re not trying to go to Europe. We’re not trying to go to America. We’ve always said it’s (expansion) about scale.

“If you’d asked me three years ago if we’d go into Australia, I’d have said ‘no’. We didn’t have scale back then. We needed 40 to 50 hotels to get the tipping point, which we did through acquiring Oaks (Hotels & Resorts).”

City hotels are the fastest-growing segment for the group, which has more than 80 properties. Anantara is slated to open its first Dubai property this month with two Avani properties due to come online before the year-end.

Anantara recently acquired a property in Siem Reap, Cambodia, marking the brand’s first foray into the country. However, the group is adopting a wait-and-see strategy for Myanmar.

“There’s a huge rush into Myanmar now. The prices are astronomical and no one really knows how it’s going to pan out with the laws,” said Heinecke.

Meanwhile, Anantara has signed a deal to manage a five-star luxury resort in Tangalle in southern Sri Lanka, offering 154 keys including private villas with their own plunge pools. Due to open in February 2015, the name of the US$40 million property has not been finalised.

Back in Thailand, Heinecke said intense competition in Bangkok’s hotel market, especially at the high end, is healthy but hoteliers need to ensure they deliver value to raise rates in the long term.

He said he was “confident” of getting high rates in destinations such as Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai, where costs were much lower.

Additional reporting by Feizal Samath

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