OUTRIGGER Resorts is set to expand its global portfolio by focusing on ownership opportunities on beachfront locations.
Bitsy Kelley, vice president, corporate communications, Outrigger Enterprises Group, said: “Outrigger was born and raised on the beach in Hawaii. This is our (expertise). We are focusing the brand only on beachfront properties and using that as a strategic push in the Pacific, South-east Asia and Indian Ocean destinations.”
Kelley added each Outrigger property, through its architecture, programmes and services, is true to the local culture to provide guests an authentic experience of the destination.
To enable this, Outrigger Resorts not only manages but owns the properties. Instead of having standardised operating procedures across the board, each property develops on its own, involving local staff in the process to fit in with the destination’s culture and environment.
Kelley said: “We bought the properties in Mauritius, Maldives, Fiji and Thailand. Our goal is to own and manage all Outrigger-branded properties. Where country regulations forbid, we will find local partners.”
There are currently nine Outrigger properties, two each in Hawaii, Fiji, and Thailand, and one each in Guam, the Maldives and Mauritius. The company is also planning properties in Seychelles, Thailand, Indonesia, Micronesian, Palau, Okinawa, the Philippines and Sri Lanka.
However, Kelley was unable to share the expected growth numbers and time frames, saying that they depend on market and political situations in the destinations.
To develop global brand awareness of Outrigger beyond its native Hawaii, the company has developed a key marketing team with agents in Australia, US, Canada and Japan as well as sales, marketing and PR personnel in France, the UK, Russia, Hong Kong and Thailand.
Get insights into how the Kelleys run the show in View From the Top, TTG Asia April 10, 2015
