Holiday Inn parent InterContinental Hotels Group unveiled its new Hualuxe Hotels and Resorts upscale hotel brand for the Chinese market, predicting that the hotels will operate in at least 100 Chinese cities within 15 to 20 years.
While U.S. and European hotel companies have expanded into China, IHG's Hualuxe is among the first Chinese-designed hotel brands to be introduced in that country by a Western company. IHG, which operates and franchises 4,400 hotels globally under seven brands, designed Hualuxe to appeal to affluent Chinese travelers by adding Asian amenities including gardens in the hotels' lobbies, late-night noodle bars, tea houses and perquisites for elite guests such as lounges and VIP check-in service.
U.K.-based InterContinental has reached preliminary deals with developers planning to build 20 of the Hualuxe hotels and expects the first one to open in China by late next year or early 2014.
The company already operates 160 hotels across China under its Western brands, which include InterContinental, Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn.
"IHG was the first international hotel group to enter China nearly 30 years ago, which gives us a deep understanding of the market and its consumers," Keith Barr, chief executive of the company's Chinese operations, said in a written statement Monday.
InterContinental representatives declined to divulge Hualuxe's expected nightly rates beyond saying they will be similar to those charged in China by Crowne Plaza and InterContinental hotels.
The company expects that more than half of each Hualuxe hotel's revenue will come from its restaurants and bars, a ratio that is the opposite of that typically found in the U.S.
IHG executives said they have established a multimillion-dollar budget to help market the Hualuxe brand in China as the hotels start opening in the coming years. But the company declined on Monday to reveal the exact amount. The name Hualuxe comes from a combination of Hua, which means majestic China, and luxury, according to IHG executives.
Other Western hoteliers also are expanding in China. Hilton Worldwide Inc. operates 28 Chinese hotels under its brands, with plans to add at least 75 hotels within five years. "Our brands are widely known and respected in China, which will only increase as our presence continues to grow," Ian Carter, Hilton's president of global operations and development, said in a written statement.
With a population of more than 1.3 billion people, China is the most coveted expansion market for many Western companies. IHG cited projections from the China National Tourism Administration that Chinese domestic travel is expected to reach 3.3 billion trips annually in 2015, and the market is forecast to expand by 5% to 8% annually prior to 2030.
IHG announced the Hualuxe brand less than a month after outlining its plans for a line of hotels in the U.S. tailored to fitness-conscious travelers. The company disclosed last month that it set aside $150 million to finance the initial rollout of its Even hotels, which will include buying hotels to convert them to the fitness-oriented brand.
IHG owns only a fraction of the hotels that it operates. Most of them are owned by other companies and operated by IHG under management contracts or franchise agreements.
No comments:
Post a Comment