Founder and CEO of Design Hotels, Claus Sendlinger, talks to Raini Hamdi about design that inspires and is timeless

Claus Sendlinger
Founder and CEO of Design Hotels

What breakthroughs in design hotels are you seeing?
We’re seeing some real breakthroughs by independent, innovative hotel groups such as Mexico’s Grupo Habita, which has 11 hotels in Mexico and one in New York, and Unlisted Collection by Singaporean hotelier Loh Lik Peng, who owns hotels like New Majestic and Wanderlust in Singapore, The Waterhouse at South Bund in Shanghai and Town Hall Hotel & Apartments in London.

The hotels in both groups act as catalysts for renewal and reinvigorate the neighbourhoods. They are truly visionary hoteliers who look at an empty lot or a nondescript structure and turn it into a concept-driven, one-of-a-kind hotel attracting locals as well as travellers.

CitizenM has an interesting product within the mid-tier hotel chains by fitting out tiny spaces with intelligent design.

What breakthroughs in design hotels would you like to see?
I would like to see more hotels provide offerings that are authentic, challenging and surprising, which are attributes of an interesting city and exciting neighbourhood. So what was hot last week might not be available this week. The hotel should be a member of the community and its staff absorbed in the fabric of the neighbourhood, where the concierge takes on the role as a lifestyle consultant.

Besides functionality, I would also like to see more originality and intuitive design in hotels. I’m convinced that if something is made with intelligence, it will look good and be useful too. At The Upper House in Hong Kong, everything is entirely intuitive. When you open a drawer, you break out in a smile because it contains all the adaptors you could possibly need.

What’s passé about design hotels, what’s not?
Passé: overly-designed hotels which are not truly functional, over-using or misusing the term ‘design’.

Here to stay: going local and providing an increased depth of experience inextricably linked to the surroundings.

How do you maintain a collection that’s timeless when design evolves?
By having clear fundamentals and constantly keeping them on track. Only when a hotel has a coherent overall concept which embraces architecture, design, brand, long-term prospects, the right people to carry things through and a good connection to the local area will they be able to create a timeless product. These six pillars are indispensable for a timeless concept.

What changes in customer profiles and markets design hotels must adapt to?
Hotels need to determine which stage of luxury their customers and markets are in then adapt and tailor-make their offerings accordingly. Trend forecasting company The Future Laboratory has recognised the existence of five different types or stages of the luxury market today, each with its own set of attributes.

The first level is about demonstrative wealth and the purchase of luxury brands like Louis Vuitton or Gucci. You can observe this tide in the emerging economies like Russia, China, Brazil and India. The second level focuses on artisanal and heritage brands where a product tells a story like Dunhill and Hermes. Customers at the third level are engaged through emotions and experience, and are less concerned with the brand and value. The fourth level brings with it social and ecological responsibility. The ultimate luxury, or fifth level, is to take a journey inward and discover oneself, perhaps in a monk’s cell or consulting a shaman.

What’s your growth target for Asia?
We forecast an annual growth of five to 10 new members in Asia-Pacific and have been working to create a more diverse APAC portfolio over the last few years, especially in key cities where we do not have presence yet. Examples include the QT Sydney and Kimamaya, our first properties in Sydney and Hokkaido respectively. We also recently added The Gate Hotel Kaminarimon by Hulic to our Tokyo portfolio and the Mira Moon, opening in Hong Kong’s Wan Chai district by February 2013.

This article was first published in TTG Asia, September 21, 2012 on page 16. To read more, please view our digital edition or click here to subscribe.

Far from being passé, the design hotel concept is expected to grow. Raini Hamdi looks at why, and at the factors that will shape the next wave of design hotels

From left: Masin: breakthrough is driven by real conceptual change; Foster-Brown: offer a complete lifestyle experience; Chua: individual service and attention to needs and likes;Blaiklock: strong sense of place and link to brand’s origins; Tiedy: good design gives a feeling of comfort and should ‘fit’

Globally, design is alive and well, thanks to growing numbers of sophisticated travellers who can tell what’s kitsch and what’s cool faster than you can check them in.

This is what is keeping design consultants and hotel developers awake at night: customers who not only want design, but technology that works. Customers who are always thirsty for something new, but who would ditch anything artificial for the authentic destination experience. Customers from emerging markets, who are not just vast in numbers, but also diverse in needs. Customers who are on business but combine leisure, and who are on leisure but must work. Design hotels must be flexible and cater to this amalgamation.

For design consultants like Frederic Masin, an associate at Hirsch Bedner Associates (HBA), and Christopher Chua, associate director-architecture of Blink Design Group, add also the client from hell, one without vision and an open mind, who does not know what he wants and ends up with generic formulas which do not push designers beyond their limits. For developers, add the design consultant who goes for the theatrics and aesthetics, leading to over-designed spaces, over-trendy materials – contrived and cold odes to themselves.

But when both come together like an interlocking jigsaw, the result can be a breakthrough.

For HBA’s Masin, a design breakthrough entails a real conceptual change, the way Grand Hyatt Singapore’s Mezza9 has changed the all-day dining concept, design and operation.

“The kitchen was brought to the front of the house and the whole layout was arranged to suit this revolution. It’s actually a common experience in Singapore, where food courts are popular, so this restaurant also represents a turning point where global brands started to pay attention and learn in a creative fashion from humble but clever local solutions,” said Masin.

The industry has seen other real design breakthroughs, such as John Portman’s atrium hotels; Amanresorts, which defined the ‘lifestyle experience’; Banyan Tree Hotels & Resorts which created the ‘destination spa’; the birth of the oxymoronic ‘urban resort’ such as The PuLi in Shanghai; the launch of W Hotels, which saw other global hotel chains following suit with their own design hotel lines; or more recently, the presence of players such as Mexico-based Grupo Habita and Singapore-based Unlisted Collection, whose design hotels reinvigorate whole neighbourhoods.

An exponential growth of design hotels in recent years, however, have made them common and pretentious at times, a point consultants interviewed by TTG Asia generally agreed on.

“It is very disheartening to see the overuse of arts, fashion and culture to hide the non-existence of real innovation in design,” said Warren Foster-Brown, managing director and owner of FBEYE International, whose current projects include The Westin Singapore Marina Bay.

The next breakthroughs
Consultants believe the next breakthroughs need to occur in the way local culture and technology are incorporated into design hotels.

Another area is in the way hotels can be designed to offer individual attention to the traveller. As Blink’s Chua, who worked on W Retreat & Spa – Maldives as an architect, put it: “Can we design a hotel that allows ‘pure’ luxury in terms of individual service and attention to needs and likes? Have a supple design that allows for slight room adjustments for repeat guests that prefer their work desk a certain way, public spaces that allow a guest who always travels alone to have his own private corner, lobby lounges that adapt to how this particular guest likes to take his drinks, etc.”

While in the past design hotels might have been more design-centric than guest-centric, the mood clearly has reversed to focus on the changing customer.

Said Foster-Brown: “The market is in their mid 20s to mid 50s, middle to upper income, well-travelled, technologically savvy and socially conscious. Extensive information on hotels in magazines, newspapers and online media exposes them to different hotel designs from around the world and they have the ability to choose a hotel that best suits their lifestyle and personality. The design, therefore, should not only offer individualised attention and personal satisfaction but incorporate a sense of place that most hotels lack these days.

“The increased use and dependence on technology to engage and retain guests is a key matter to look into. As tablets, electronic concierges, in-room connectivity and entertainment system would continue to enhance the ambience, convenience and comfort, design hotels, unlike traditional hotels, should compete by providing a particular lifestyle experience that would exceed the guest’s physical, emotional and well-being needs.

“Who wants to be at home when one can be in a home one dreams of? That’s the dream stay.”

Added Lyndon Neri, founding partner, NHDRO: “Clients are becoming more global. They have two desires on a short trip: cultural immersion and a sense of tranquility. They want the hotel to have a strong sense of domesticity (home) to give them peace and rest but, at the same time, these new customers want a hotel culture that is contextual and rooted to the place that they are visiting.”

On top of the game
Design hotels believe they are on top of changing customer trends.

Mike Tiedy, senior vice president-Design & Innovation at Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, said: “Appreciation for good design is growing around the world. We drive to wow each customer that walks through the door with an expressive and immersive environment. The customer does not have to intellectually contemplate every design solution. The design gives a feeling of comfort and ‘fit’ that makes everything just seem right.”

What makes everything fits is not just an edgy design, but a high level of comfort, technology that works and a highly personalised service delivery, added Markland Blaiklock, senior vice president of Sofitel Asia-Pacific.

The chain opened its second Sofitel So in the world in Bangkok recently and, in a first, had no fewer than four different architects/designers working on the property. But it all fits, Blaiklock maintained. “The owner, Verawat Wongvasith, wanted to theme the hotel around the five elements in Chinese feng shui and this evolved into creating four hotels within the hotel, each with its own private atrium.

“The approach merged well with the DNA of the brand, which centres on strong sense of destination (in this case, Thailand), with a fifth designer, Christian Lacroix, providing a link to Sofitel’s (French) origin.”

The hotel also introduced a paperless Mac mini solution in all rooms, giving guests the convenience to order room service, browse the Internet and watch TV from one source.

Players expect Asia’s design hotels sector to fast catch up with Europe and the US – which have had a headstart on the concept – and produce new breakthroughs.

Design Hotels founder and CEO, Claus Sendlinger, said: “South-east Asia appears to be leading the pack within Asia, especially Bali and Thailand, where there is an increasing number of small, independent design-led properties with interesting concepts.

“We are also seeing more prominent architects, designers and creative minds from Singapore working on interesting projects throughout Asia. Having the World Architectural Festival organised in Singapore for the first time this year outside of Barcelona is also a testament to the importance of design in Asia.”

Blaiklock too observes that Asia is now attracting and cultivating more talented and innovative designers. “The cost to construct and the cost of labour are also generally lower. In addition, the rich cultures in Asia provide an exotic backdrop and inspiration for very unique design concepts,” he said.

This article was first published in TTG Asia, September 21, 2012 on page 14. To read more, please view our digital edition or click here to subscribe.

Hotels watch out. Asia’s serviced residence operators are seeing a surge in short-stay bookings, with one even launching a hotel-residence brand. By Linda Haden, Hong Xu and S Puvaneswary

From Top left: Capri by Fraser in Singapore; Far East’s Orchard Scotts Residences in Singapore; Savills Residence Century Park in Shanghai; Ascott Huai Hai Road Shanghai; Oakwood Premier in Manila

Frasers Hospitality
Tonya Khong
Area general manager, Asia Pacific

Jastina Balen
Director, group branding and communications

Q What do you think of the short-stay market?
We see an increasing number of requests from people coming on shorter stays. The market has a lot of potential to grow, particularly in cities where there is a rising influx of business travellers. Even for those travelling on leisure with a family or with girlfriends, a serviced apartment is appealing because of the communal living area. Key growth areas for our short-stay product include Australia, China, India and South-east Asia.

Q What is your product for the market?
Capri by Fraser is our new hotel-residence brand. Our newly opened Singapore property has a hotel licence and we will open in Ho Chi Minh City by the end of this year and Kuala Lumpur in 2013. Consumer research and input from existing properties highlighted that there was a gap in the market for a technology- and design-led serviced suite product for stays up to seven days.

Q What differentiates your product?
As a hybrid product, we offer guests complete flexibility and independence in terms of day-to-day living. Dry cleaning in hotels can sometimes cost an arm and a leg, so we give guests the option to do the laundry themselves while being entertained in our Spin and Play rooms. They also might not want to have room service or eat out all the time, so they can cook a meal in the privacy of their room or pick up TV dinners from our deli. Nonetheless, we provide all the services and amenities expected of an upscale hotel.

Q Why should travel consultants choose you?
We bring our expertise from the serviced residence domain and we try to find the best marriage by combining elements of a hotel with that of a serviced residence. We don’t have huge meeting rooms, but give the space back to guests in their rooms. Capri by Fraser offers a complete lifestyle, not just a room. Even though the concept is very much design-led, it is not overtly pretentious. Instead it was developed to be highly functional and has been tailored to tech-savvy young professionals.

Savills Residence
Neil Harvey
Director

Q What do you think of the short-stay market?
While our core business will always be longer-term stays of one month plus, we have seen a shift towards serviced apartments for weekly accommodation by business travellers. We have also seen a shift to the weekend market for domestic leisure travellers within China in first-tier cities.

Q What is your product for the market?
Many of our properties have, or will have, hotel licences. This gives us the option to secure more short-term business if the location dictates. However, our product and format will not change from that of offering serviced apartments under the Savills Residence branding.

Q What differentiates your product?As part of a leading residential leasing company within the region, we have been able to ascertain current and future requirements of longer-term travellers from different regions. This ensures our products and facilities match the requirements of the travelling market in varying locations. Our studies have shown that lighter interiors utilising natural finishes and details for ease of use – yet remaining totally functional – are considerations in addition to the norm of security, high levels of service and privacy.

Q Why should travel consultants choose you?
Service delivery levels at any Savills Residence are benchmarked against those of international hotels. However, due to the longer-term nature of the guests length of stay, we provide much higher personalised levels of service for residents. These may range from guest preferences within the apartment by ensuring the same housekeeping maids provide service, to weekly grocery shopping, flower deliveries and even updates of events happening within the city that may be of interest.

“There is definitely demand for a product that bridges the gap between serviced residences and hotels. Fraser’s move to put its first Capri by Fraser property in Changi Business Park is a smart one, given the multitude of multinational banks based there that need to house visiting employees from abroad. It is certainly a property we would consider for travellers staying for just one to two weeks.”

Janet Tan-Collis
CEO, East West Executive Travellers Singapore

Far East Hospitality
Spokesperson

Q What do you think of the short-stay market?
Despite the malaise in Europe and the US, strong intra-regional demand for both business and leisure travel has made the short-stay segment an area of opportunity. We see potential particularly from regional markets, especially from Indonesia, Malaysia and Australia.

Q What is your product for the market?
Even though we do not have a specfic product or brand for short stays, we have a strong presence in the mid-upscale market with a diverse inventory that spans strategic locations across Singapore, offering short- and long-term accommodation catering to business and leisure guests.

Q What differentiates your product?
With nine serviced apartments, our extensive experience in the short-stay segment through our hotel operations and our brand of homegrown Singapore world-class hospitality, we believe Far East Hospitality’s serviced apartments offer a very competitive proposition for the short-stay segment. Even as we continue to strengthen our portfolio and grow our flagship brands Oasia, Village and Quincy, we have also been cultivating what we call ‘home-grown Singaporean hospitality’ across all of our operations, which will become our distinct personality and differentiator.

Q Why should travel consultants choose you?
Serviced apartments offer a more flexible and intimate home-away-from-home experience, unlike hotels which tend to have more ‘standard’ rooms and products. There is a much broader variety of apartment types, services and facilities, and range of locations on offer compared to hotels – the majority of which tend to cluster in or around the city core. We believe that this will appeal to increasingly travel-savvy guests, who tend to seek more personal experiences.

The Ascott
Tony Soh
Chief corporate officer

Q What do you think of the short-stay market?
Although most of our serviced residences focus mainly on expatriates and business travellers who stay for a month or more, our products and services are also very attractive to travellers on short stays, especially in key international gateway cities such as London, Paris, Singapore, Melbourne, Beijing, Bangkok and Tokyo.

From a broader perspective, Asia is the fastest-growing region in the world today. The high level of foreign direct investments in countries like China, India and Singapore will continue to generate strong demand for serviced apartments, including short stays.

Q What is your product for the market?
We believe in striking the right balance – having sufficient brands to target specific groups of travellers with unique needs and preferences, while avoiding too many brands that may be confusing. We already have three distinctive brands of serviced residences that are well-suited to the different lifestyle needs of travellers both on long and short stays.

Q What differentiates your product?
We hope to achieve this through our multi-million dollar refurbishment programme that is being rolled out in Asia and Europe. We have received very positive feedback for our refurbished properties. Through customer-centric initiatives and enhanced reservation and property management systems, we want to redesign the experience at each service touch-point, so that in every interaction with staff, guests will experience the unique Ascott touch that makes them feel at home.

Q Why should travel consultants choose you?
Today’s savvy travellers are increasingly looking for value and flexibility when choosing accommodation options. As opposed to cookie-cutter rooms, serviced residences provide the flexibility of sharing an apartment with individual bedrooms, more space, separate living and dining areas, and a well-equipped kitchen. More importantly, these features enable guests to still enjoy the familiar comforts of home while getting acquainted with the sights and sounds of the city.

Oakwood Asia-Pacific
Caroline Leong
Director of marketing

Q What do you think of the short-stay market?
There has been a marked growth as travellers, both business and leisure, are more aware of the benefits and value for money this type of accommodation provides. This increase is being seen all over Asia.

Q What is your product for the market?
All our three brands in Asia – Oakwood Premier, Oakwood Residence and Oakwood Apartments – accept short stays and provide housing for a wide range of customers who can choose according to their requirements and lifestyles. Most of our properties have no minimum length of stay and accept stays as short as one night.

Q What differentiates your product?
Oakwood properties are elegant in design and quality, with an international feel that makes any guest immediately feel welcome regardless of nationality. The apartments are spacious, fully furnished and fully equipped.

Q Why should travel consultants choose you?
The major benefit of staying, or putting up your client, at a serviced apartment property instead of a hotel is the living space. Travel consultants would be applauded for not getting their customers to cram into small hotel rooms but instead allowing them to enjoy actual living spaces like the living room, dining room and kitchen. This is most important for family travel where some of the conveniences of home need not be given up, such as cooking your own breakfast for the kids or washing their clothing.

“There is a growing demand for serviced residences from both business and family travellers for long and short stays. Companies sending a few staff on short-term overseas assignments find serviced residences more affordable compared to hotel accommodation. The cooking facilities also appeal to family travel, even if it is for a short stay of less than a week.”

Sharitha Rajendran
Travel consultant, Topaz Travels Malaysia

This article was first published in TTG Asia, September 21, 2012 on page 10. To read more, please view our digital edition or click here to subscribe.

Additional reporting from Hong Xu and S Puvaneswary