Q&A: Christopher Wong, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts

'Good language skills make things easier in India'

Canadian hospitality chain Four Seasons announced its second hotel in India earlier this week. The new property will come up in Noida, near Delhi. India is one of the very few countries in Asia where the company plans to have multiple hotels. Christopher Wong, senior vice-president, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, in conversation with Ruchika Chitravanshi, shares the company's plans and outlook. Edited excerpts:

Three years after launching Four Seasons in Mumbai, your second property is coming up near Delhi. What are you plans for the Indian market?
We had been looking for a project in Delhi and the right partner for a long time. The Delhi property will come up in four years in partnership with 3C (a real estate developer). Also, there is a project under construction in Bangalore. We want to open some resort such as the projects in Goa, Kerala and Rajasthan. We are in talks with several developers. The Goa project will be announced in the next six to 12 months. In Rajasthan, there can be more than one Four Seasons Hotel, given the nature of the circuit there.

 

What is your India-specific strategy?
There is scope of long-term growth in India. India and China are key countries. Our strategy is the same here as it is anywhere else in the world. We are a single-brand company. We are very focused and have no plans for mid segment. We are a luxury brand and will stick to that.

How different is the Indian market vis-a-vis others where you operate?
In India, there are a lot of established local operators such as the Oberoi, Taj, Leela etc. They are very old brands and also operate hotels at the high end. To be successful, we have to be able to compete with them. I think, anywhere you go you have to customise, but at the same time maintain consistency. So we may customise our restaurants, F&B (food and beverages) offering, but service standards have to be the same everywhere.

A lot of international players are entering the Indian market. How will you distinguish yourself?
It is the same everywhere. We all have our own space that we operate in and have our consistent product. One of the things that we continue to do well is making sure that our product is consistent. We are in a very service-oriented business, so, it is important we offer experience that differentiates us from other hotels. India as a market has a lot of scope of branded hotels.

Where does India stand in your overall business?
At the moment it is not a big share, but it will be. We operate 85 hotels in the world in 25 countries. Half of them are in North America. But that is going to change as the growth is coming out of Asia and West Asia. Geographical distribution is going to change in a way that Asia will have over 30 per cent of our hotels. India, in our global portfolio, will be very limited as the gestation period for hotels is long. There are not many countries in Asia where we have multiple hotels. In countries such as Hong Kong and Singapore, we have only one hotel each. So, considering that India offers us a lot of scope, we are planning multiple hotels here. Only in China we have 12 hotels, it is a huge market. In Asia, we are also looking to explore Korea, Seoul and Taiwan.

Is it a disadvantage to be a one-brand company?
It has its pros and cons. We are definitely very focused. We bring a lot of depth to our business.

How difficult has it been to find personnel?
In India, it is easier because the language skills are good. The level of education in the sector is high. Over the time, we would want to localise our personnel. In initial years, we will have expat managers who understand Four seasons. Long-term plan is to train people locally who can carry on with the job.