Building a business around travel between countries in the Asia-Pacific region isn't exactly the easiest thing to do right now, but that's exactly what high-end luxury purveyors Capella Hotel Group is doing.
With the recent announcement of the Capella Kyoto, a 92-room luxury property slated to open in one of Japan's most desired markets in 2025, Capella officials now have hotels or plans for properties in nine markets across the Asia-Pacific region, including Singapore, Bali, Bangkok, Hanoi, the Maldives, Sydney and South Korea.
Hotel News Now recently connected with Cristiano Rinaldi, who took over as president of Singapore-based Capella Hotel Group earlier this year, to discuss his growth plans for Japan and beyond.
What does it mean for Capella to make its entrance into Japan?
Japan has always been on our radar. Their focus on hospitality, omotenashi — which means to wholeheartedly care for your guests — has been an inspiration for Capella Hotel Group’s service philosophy — excellence in the craft of hospitality with the highest level of personalized service.
Capella Kyoto will be a stepping stone to roll out our brand across Japan, a market of strategic importance for Capella Hotel Group.
When targeting your entry into Japan, why Kyoto as the destination in particular?
Choosing Kyoto was a strategic decision for the group. The historical capital of Japan, Kyoto is brimming with culture and traditions that complement our group’s vision of developing this hotel into one of Japan’s leading cultural destinations as well as to establish our presence in Japan.
Do you have further growth plans in the country?
We are planning to develop both brands, Capella and Patina in Japan, and will share more in due course.
What and where are the growth opportunities for Capella into 2023?
Capella Hotels and Resorts will be opening Capella Sydney in [the first quarter of] 2023.
What are your expectations for travel across the Asia-Pacific region for the balance of 2022 and 2023?
I am cautiously optimistic that by end of 2022, travel will be back to almost pre-pandemic days. However, we must remain nimble as the threat of recession and other external factors could impact the speed at which the travel business returns.
Has Capella’s approach to luxury changed at all over the course of the pandemic?
Luxury is about being recognized as a valuable and highly personalized experiential customer service that is delivered with an extraordinary degree of reliability and a genuine level of emotional engagement.
At Capella Hotel Group, we remain focused on our brand positioning to reach the right balance between the luxury experience and human touch. Our guests continue to value the personalization of their experiences at our hotels; the craftsmanship of small but important details relating to their stay; and the genuine connection with local culture and heritage. We see absolutely no conflict with providing extraordinary service consistent with our positioning while at the same time maintaining a safe and secure environment for our guests.
Has the profile of the luxury traveler changed over the past few years?
We believe that post-pandemic, responsible tourism will be in-demand and ethical brands that can nurture an enriching engagement will be successful. Travelers will seek holiday destinations and brands that can provide authentic, non-conventional experiences that are aligned with their lifestyle and values.
Capella Hotel Group is a brand that provides guests an opportunity to spend their time responsibly in a place that allows them to fully immerse and impact the community and the regions they visit, through programs like Capella Curates, Daily Rituals and Capella Moments.
What should a hotel do today to stand out in the luxury segment?
The hotel needs to understand that their No. 1 priority is to meet the needs of their guests and to make their stay effortlessness for them.
There’s no room for complacency in the market. If demands aren’t met, there is no shortage of competition that will run — or indeed jet — that extra mile for their guests and brands can lose them in a flash.
How have your hotels fared without Chinese outbound travelers?
We are thankful that our teams at Capella Hotels and Resorts were quick to pivot all revenue-generating activities to cater to our domestic markets, when it was clear that international travel would be significantly restricted.
As a leisure-oriented hotel management group, it is always important for us to develop creative experiences to entertain our guests. This made our transition in catering to a domestic audience relatively seamless and has also helped us to develop a much stronger relationship with our domestic audience, which allows us to have continued commercial success at our properties.
Do you have plans to grow in different regions across the globe?
Yes, we do and are actively working toward finalizing some amazing opportunities. We are also consistently receiving inquiries for development in key international markets such as America, Europe and the Middle East.