瑞士HIM蒙特勒酒店管理学院校友Coral接受环球时报的采访!！
Coral学姐接受了环球时报英文版陈旸记者的访问，畅谈自己的留学经历及对酒店管理的独到理解哦~
Despite an oversupply, posh hotels keep on rising
（原文：http://business.globaltimes.cn/comment/2010-09/571092.html）
Boosted by property developers' investment zeal, multinational high-end hotel management groups and new hotels are expanding rapidly in China despite an overabundance.
"We will open at least four more hotels in Beijing this year and bring the total number to 30 in Beijing in the near future," said Roland Steiner, regional general manager of InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), which overlooks more than 20 hotels including InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express in the metropolis.
The German hotel veteran has worked in China's hospitality industry for 18 years, including in second-tier cities such as Urumqi, Wuhan and Dalian before taking charge of Crowne Plaza Park View Wuzhou Beijing in 2003, IHG's five-star flagship hotel located near the National Stadium or Bird's Nest, as it is popularly known.
During those years he's seen more international hotel brands coming to China, more new hotels emerging in the cities, more domestic guests staying in luxury hotels, as well as rising labor costs.
"Working in a high-end hotel used to be an attractive job, but nowadays there are many more new opportunities for young people and it's not easy to find good talent," he said. "It's also challenging for existing hotels to keep the facilities updated, in order to compete with new hotels."
"Thus we always pay great attention to our employees' development, and also re-invest every year for our facilities, such as upgrading the club lounge this year," he added.
Steiner is confident of IHG's business growth in China. IHG's interim report showed that China was its strongest performing region with revenues increasing 29 percent to $137 million from January to June this year.
"There are some local hotel management groups emerging, but consumers always go for brand," he said. "For example, InterContinental is known as 'luxury', and Crowne Plaza is known as 'the place to meet.' "
Multinational dominance
Jianguo Hotel Beijing was the first hotel to introduce international hotel management in China in 1982. Currently more than 40 international hotel management groups including the UK's IHG, the US's Marriott International and France's Accor operate more than 1,000 hotels in China, said Du Jiang, deputy director of the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) at a conference July 26.
"China's high-end hotel management market is nearly monopolized by foreign companies and hotel owners pay them management fees of more than 10 billion yuan ($1.47 billion) per year," said Zhao Huanyan, chief consultant of SAO Hotel Solution Consulting.
"Most property owners have little experience in hotel management, so they choose multinationals based on their brand values and international experience," he said. "Local governments also encourage multinationals' participation to heighten their image of globalization."
Zhao admitted there is a gap between local and international hotel management in sales revenues and service levels, but it is closing due to the popularity of online booking and an increasing number of domestic guests.
"For example, since HK CTS Hotels, a subsidiary of China National Travel Service (HK) Group, replaced Hilton to operate a five-star hotel in Nanjing in 2006, it ceased to lose money and began to turn a profit," he said.
Twenty-eight-year-old Chen Jie feels otherwise. "During my internship at hotels in Shanghai and Switzerland, I found Chinese hotels have better facilities, but their service quality lags behind foreign hotels," said the graduate of the HIM Hotel Institute Montreux in Switzerland.
But she gave up offers from hotels in Greece and the US after graduation, and came back to Shanghai in 2005. "There are more opportunities in China, because the hospitality industry is developing fast and there is a lot of room for improvement," she said.
Now she works at the Peninsula Hotel located in The Bund. "I chose to work in the Hong Kong- based hotel management group, because of its advanced and cross-cultural management mode and relatively higher salary," she said. "Women have more opportunities in the hospitality industry, and my overseas educational background and language abilities also help my career."
Hotels increasing, profits falling
However, industry associations and experts have noted the oversupply in China's hotel industry, especially in the luxury segment.
Zhao said the number of five-star and four-star hotels has experienced an annual growth rate of 20 percent in China, and the oversupply problem is more serious in Beijing and Shanghai, which resulted from the 2008 Olympics Games and this year's Expo.
Gross operating profits for the five-star hotel sector in China have fallen to an eight-year low, and profits per room declined to 91,752 yuan ($13,535) in 2009, 39 percent below the peak level reached in 2005, the fourth straight year the figure has declined, according to the 2010 China Hotel Industry Study published jointly by the US's Horwath HTL and the China Tourist Hotel Associa-tion in July.
Sliding profits are not deterring new projects, however. STR Global's data shows about 133,000 hotel rooms are planned or under construction in China.
"If we don't operate those new hotels, someone else will operate them," said Steiner. "The occupancy is healthy this time in Beijing, but we can not expect the room rate as high as in 2008, because of fierce competition."
Fast expansion breeds conflicts
Foreign hoteliers are eagerly tapping the fast-growing market. IHG plans to more than double in size in the next five years. Marriott International said that it will increase the number of hotels from 46 to 90 within five years. Sheraton Hotels & Resorts aims to open eight more hotels in China by this year and another 18 by 2015.
Zhao said overseas investment only accounts for 4 percent of the total investment in the hotel sector, and most foreign operators do business in China by signing management or franchise contracts with local property owners.
"Normally multinational operators run one hotel under one brand in a city, in case they compete with each other," he said. "But in China you can see several hotels of a certain brand in a city, and some lower level brands become higher level when they come to China."
Du from CNTA said the fast expansion has also strengthened conflicts between hotel owners and their operators.
Hilton's five-star hotel in Chongqing is the latest example. The hotel was involved in the prostitution business in June and was forced to close down for a while and stripped of its star rating.
"Chinese property owners want to gain high profits in the short-term, and sometimes hotel operators have to sacrifice their principles and maintain the agreement," Zhao said.
Steiner said their hotel owners care more. "As the management team, our target is as same as the property owners, including creating a good image of the hotel, taking good care of assets, keep improving service quality and making higher profits."
Despite an oversupply, posh hotels keep on rising
（原文：http://business.globaltimes.cn/comment/2010-09/571092.html）
Boosted by property developers' investment zeal, multinational high-end hotel management groups and new hotels are expanding rapidly in China despite an overabundance.
"We will open at least four more hotels in Beijing this year and bring the total number to 30 in Beijing in the near future," said Roland Steiner, regional general manager of InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), which overlooks more than 20 hotels including InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express in the metropolis.
The German hotel veteran has worked in China's hospitality industry for 18 years, including in second-tier cities such as Urumqi, Wuhan and Dalian before taking charge of Crowne Plaza Park View Wuzhou Beijing in 2003, IHG's five-star flagship hotel located near the National Stadium or Bird's Nest, as it is popularly known.
During those years he's seen more international hotel brands coming to China, more new hotels emerging in the cities, more domestic guests staying in luxury hotels, as well as rising labor costs.
"Working in a high-end hotel used to be an attractive job, but nowadays there are many more new opportunities for young people and it's not easy to find good talent," he said. "It's also challenging for existing hotels to keep the facilities updated, in order to compete with new hotels."
"Thus we always pay great attention to our employees' development, and also re-invest every year for our facilities, such as upgrading the club lounge this year," he added.
Steiner is confident of IHG's business growth in China. IHG's interim report showed that China was its strongest performing region with revenues increasing 29 percent to $137 million from January to June this year.
"There are some local hotel management groups emerging, but consumers always go for brand," he said. "For example, InterContinental is known as 'luxury', and Crowne Plaza is known as 'the place to meet.' "
Multinational dominance
Jianguo Hotel Beijing was the first hotel to introduce international hotel management in China in 1982. Currently more than 40 international hotel management groups including the UK's IHG, the US's Marriott International and France's Accor operate more than 1,000 hotels in China, said Du Jiang, deputy director of the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) at a conference July 26.
"China's high-end hotel management market is nearly monopolized by foreign companies and hotel owners pay them management fees of more than 10 billion yuan ($1.47 billion) per year," said Zhao Huanyan, chief consultant of SAO Hotel Solution Consulting.
"Most property owners have little experience in hotel management, so they choose multinationals based on their brand values and international experience," he said. "Local governments also encourage multinationals' participation to heighten their image of globalization."
Zhao admitted there is a gap between local and international hotel management in sales revenues and service levels, but it is closing due to the popularity of online booking and an increasing number of domestic guests.
"For example, since HK CTS Hotels, a subsidiary of China National Travel Service (HK) Group, replaced Hilton to operate a five-star hotel in Nanjing in 2006, it ceased to lose money and began to turn a profit," he said.
Twenty-eight-year-old Chen Jie feels otherwise. "During my internship at hotels in Shanghai and Switzerland, I found Chinese hotels have better facilities, but their service quality lags behind foreign hotels," said the graduate of the HIM Hotel Institute Montreux in Switzerland.
But she gave up offers from hotels in Greece and the US after graduation, and came back to Shanghai in 2005. "There are more opportunities in China, because the hospitality industry is developing fast and there is a lot of room for improvement," she said.
Now she works at the Peninsula Hotel located in The Bund. "I chose to work in the Hong Kong- based hotel management group, because of its advanced and cross-cultural management mode and relatively higher salary," she said. "Women have more opportunities in the hospitality industry, and my overseas educational background and language abilities also help my career."
Hotels increasing, profits falling
However, industry associations and experts have noted the oversupply in China's hotel industry, especially in the luxury segment.
Zhao said the number of five-star and four-star hotels has experienced an annual growth rate of 20 percent in China, and the oversupply problem is more serious in Beijing and Shanghai, which resulted from the 2008 Olympics Games and this year's Expo.
Gross operating profits for the five-star hotel sector in China have fallen to an eight-year low, and profits per room declined to 91,752 yuan ($13,535) in 2009, 39 percent below the peak level reached in 2005, the fourth straight year the figure has declined, according to the 2010 China Hotel Industry Study published jointly by the US's Horwath HTL and the China Tourist Hotel Associa-tion in July.
Sliding profits are not deterring new projects, however. STR Global's data shows about 133,000 hotel rooms are planned or under construction in China.
"If we don't operate those new hotels, someone else will operate them," said Steiner. "The occupancy is healthy this time in Beijing, but we can not expect the room rate as high as in 2008, because of fierce competition."
Fast expansion breeds conflicts
Foreign hoteliers are eagerly tapping the fast-growing market. IHG plans to more than double in size in the next five years. Marriott International said that it will increase the number of hotels from 46 to 90 within five years. Sheraton Hotels & Resorts aims to open eight more hotels in China by this year and another 18 by 2015.
Zhao said overseas investment only accounts for 4 percent of the total investment in the hotel sector, and most foreign operators do business in China by signing management or franchise contracts with local property owners.
"Normally multinational operators run one hotel under one brand in a city, in case they compete with each other," he said. "But in China you can see several hotels of a certain brand in a city, and some lower level brands become higher level when they come to China."
Du from CNTA said the fast expansion has also strengthened conflicts between hotel owners and their operators.
Hilton's five-star hotel in Chongqing is the latest example. The hotel was involved in the prostitution business in June and was forced to close down for a while and stripped of its star rating.
"Chinese property owners want to gain high profits in the short-term, and sometimes hotel operators have to sacrifice their principles and maintain the agreement," Zhao said.
Steiner said their hotel owners care more. "As the management team, our target is as same as the property owners, including creating a good image of the hotel, taking good care of assets, keep improving service quality and making higher profits."
