[photopress:LandisShanghai.JPG,full,alignright]Landis Hotels and Resorts, which is headquartered in Taiwan, is now opening up on the mainland and claims it is offering a different choice with ‘a touch of personalised service, even better than home’. The thought occurs that any comparison between a luxury hotel and your home is pretty ludicrous. If I tried calling my wife on the intercom and asked for breakfast in bed. I might get it, but possibly not in the manner intended.
Landis has two brands under its management, full-on luxury which uses the name Landis, and Hotel One, which uses a boutique approach. It has now opened two hotels on the mainland, Hotel One Suzhou and Skyway Landis Shanghai.
Eddie Hsia, general manager of Hotel One Suzhou, said, ‘We are planning to have 30 to 50 hotels within 10 to 15 years. The market potential is tremendous and many new hotels are sprouting up in the country. Both the Hotel One and Skyway Landis Hotel Shanghai are trying to offer the guests a different taste.’
The average decoration costs per room at Hotel One Suzhou is about RMB160,000, which is more expensive than most luxury hotel room decoration expenses. Eddie Hsia said, ‘We mainly target those who know how to lead an elegant life.’
While Hotel One in Suzhou is a boutique hotel that plays to the ‘niche’ market, Skyway Landis Hotel Shanghai is a traditional luxury hotel competing head-on with other well-established brands.
The 52-story hotel is one of the tallest hotels in Shanghai’s Puxi area. In 2005 it was selected by the municipal government as one of the area’s top-10 landmarks.
The general manager André Joulian. said the its main customers are currently from Taiwan, followed by clients from Japan. He said, ‘We are trying to attract more guests from Europe. And it may start from my home country France first.’
Source: China Daily