Tag: hotels

The new website by Six Senses Hotels

Luxury brands move to merge corporate content and eCommerce platforms, as Ferrari integrates the Apple iPad mini and Siri technology into its FF hatchback

Will digital marketing bring new consumers to luxury brands? According to a new survey from Luxury Interactive and ShopIgniter the answer is a resounding yes. The study found that the leading business driver among luxury brand marketers, for investments in digital and social media, is in fact new customer acquisition.

63% of the luxury marketers surveyed predict that by 2015, digital marketing will be the most important form of marketing for their brands — more important than traditional print, TV or loyalty programs. This very year 85% will increase their digital spend and 72% will increase spending on social media marketing.

“ Social media creates opportunities to drive product discovery, generate new customer insight & move prospects closer to a purchase decision ”

“While acquiring new customers in social media is logical given the demographics it draws, luxury brands need to develop strategies built on extending their brand promise, inviting fans in and providing the exclusivity they expect,” explained Marko Muellner, VP marketing at ShopIgniter, in a statement.

“Our experience shows that roughly half of a brand’s social fans are not in the house file, which means there is ample opportunity to not only introduce the brand to a new customer, but also find opportunities to drive product discovery, generate new customer insight and move prospects closer to a purchase decision.”

Baselworld, App

The Baselworld 2013 App is now available for Android, Blackberry and iOS, offering help for those negotiating the new hall layouts. The free appincludes interactive 3D hall plans, detailed information about exhibitors and an overview of events and press conferences. Users can add their own notes and photos to an exhibitors entry.

Download: Apple
Source: Retail Jeweller

Christian Louboutin, Chinese Social Media

Christian Louboutin has launched on Sina Weibo, Youku and Tudou, as the brand looks to extend its digital influence in Asia. A new ecommerce site to service countries within the APAC region will be launching in the coming months, alongside a simplified Chinese corporate website and a dedicated ‘Stop Fake’ site.

Websites: Weibo, Tudou, Youku
Source: Christian Louboutin

Condé Nast, Web TV

Condé Nast has announced its latest digital push: an online video network, featuring Glamour and GQ-branded original video series sponsored by Procter & Gamble, Microsoft and Mondelēz International. More “branded programming” featuring other Condé brands will follow, more than a year after Condé announced the launch of a new entertainment division.

Source: Fashionista

Escada, eCommerce

Premium womenswear label Escada has launched its first e-commerce website in its home country of Germany. The site marks the brand’s first transactional website, offering apparel and accessories from both the mainline Escada collection as well as the sub-brand Escada Sport.

Website: escada.com
Source: Fashion United

Ferrari, Apple Integration

Following the appointment of Eddie Cue – Apple’s software and services guru – to Ferrari’s board, the luxury automaker has announced that Siri integration and a pair of iPad Minis are now standard on the Ferrari FF. The FF, its all-wheel drive, four-seat hatchback, will have iPad Minis installed in the headrests as part of a new rear-seat entertainment package.

Source: Wired

Jaquet Droz, Website

Celebrating its 275th anniversary, Jaquet Droz has unveiled its new HTML 5 website, infused with the brand’s DNA and the latest on-line technological innovations. All content can be shared on numerous social networks like Facebook or Twitter, and is available in 8 languages (French, English, German, Spanish, Italian, Russia, Simplified Chinese, Japanese).

Website & Source: Jaquet Droz

Lanvin, mCommerce

Lanvin has launched its e-store on its mobile-optimszed site. The brand announced the new shopping channel to consumers with a direct email and Twitter campaign. When mobile users access Lanvin’s site on their mobile device, they are brought to a homepage where they can scroll right and left through branded content such as exclusive items available on the e-store, fashion show videos, collections and window displays.

Source: Luxury Daily

LuxDeco, App

LuxDeco, an online destination for luxury home products, will launch its first shoppable magazine app for the iPad on April 24th. The latest trends and interior styles are brought to life in video features, captivating photo shoots and exclusive interviews with renowned tastemakers, stylists and connoisseurs of design.

“With over 25% of our audience coming from the iPad, a luxury shoppable magazine was the obvious next step”, Says founder and CEO Jonathan Holmes.

Source: LuxDeco

Proenza Schouler, Website

Proenza Schouler has reinvigorated its website, the final phase of its rebranding, undertaken in collaboration with art director Peter Miles. Stocking a range of small leather goods, accessories and select items from the Spring 2013 runway collection, the revamped site will significantly expand Proenza Schouler’s presence in e-commerce.

Website: proenzaschouler.com
Source: Business of Fashion

Six Senses, Website

Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas has launched its new web site, in keeping with the brands new visual identity and repositioning. The Web site makes full use of the group’s vast library of extraordinary images, highlighting the aesthetics, experiences, and natural beauty of the locations that Six Senses call home.

Website: sixsenses.com
Source: Hospitality.net

Zegna, Website

As part of its comprehensive digital strategy, Ermenegildo Zegna, has consolidated its online platforms, Zegna.com and the Zegna Online Store Powered by Yoox Group, under a single interactive structure that delivers full coverage of hot new style trends, fashion news and exclusive content together with a fashion-forward online shopping experience.

Website & Source: Zegna

For more in the series of The Latest Digital, please see our most recent editions as follows:

- The Latest Digital: Gucci, Porsche & Raymond Weil
- The Latest Digital: Labelux, Burberry & Chanel
- The Latest Digital: Cartier, Prada & Tod’s

Vana Belle, a Luxury Collection Resort, Koh Samui

Mantis Collection opens White Desert ecological camp in Antarctica, as the first new hotel for over 100 years in opens in Switzerland’s Gstaad

White Desert, Antarctica

Mantis Collection has debuted in Antarctica, the world’s most southern continent, with a five-star ecological camp comprised of seven individual pods. Six of the seven pods are luxury en-suite bedrooms, each 6.1m in diameter, including beds, a wash area, toilet and writing desk. There is also a separate shower tent with a full shower and toilet facilities.

Website: mantiscollection.com
Source: Luxury Travel Magazine

W Hotel, Bangkok

Starwood’s W Hotel brand has opened in Bangkok’s commercial district, in the city’s prestigious Embassy Row. The 407 room property features the signature W bed, state-of-the-art entertainment systems, world class restaurant, bar, and the brand’s Whatever/Whenever service.

Website: starwoodhotels.com/whotels
Source: Hospitality Design

Waldorf Astoria, Berlin

Hilton Worldwide has launched its luxury Waldorf Astoria brand in Germany, with the opening of the 232-room Waldorf Astoria Berlin. Located within the new 118-metre high Zoofenster skyscraper in Berlin’s Charlottenburg district, the art-deco inspired hotel features Les Solistes by Pierre Gagnaire alongside the New York style Lang Bar.

Website: waldorfastoria.hilton.com
Source: Business Traveller

The Alpina, Gstaad

Nestled into five acres and crafted from local materials (stone from the Alps and repurposed wood from nearby centuries-old farmhouses), The Alpina Gstaad is the first new hotel for over 100 years in one of Switzerland’s most glamorous destinations. The $337 million-dollar showpiece includes the hotel, private apartments and three chalets. (Image: Reto Guntli)

Website: thealpinagstaad.ch
Source: Forbes

Mandarin Oriental, Guangzhou

Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group has opened in China’s third largest city, Guangzhou. The 233 room, 30 suite property boasts a signature spa, steam rooms, saunas, vitality pools and experience showers. Guests can choose between five food and beverage offerings, one of which is the Mandarin Cake Shop, serving sandwiches, cakes and pastries.

Website: mandarinoriental.com/guangzhou
Source: Mandarin Oriental

Fairmont the Palm, Dubai

IFA Hotels and Resorts has launched Fairmont the Palm, the only operational resort located on the trunk of the Palm Jumeirah, Dubai. The $330m five-star beach front hotel features 460 metres of beachfront, 381 guestrooms and seven food and beverage outlets.

Website: fairmont.com/palm-dubai
Source: Arabianbusiness.com

Vana Belle, Koh Samui

Starwood Hotels has opened Vana Belle, a Luxury Collection Resort, on Thailand’s Koh Samui. The Luxury Collection brand’s third hotel in Thailand features 80 Pool Suites and Pool Villas, with expansive outdoor spaces, breath-taking views and the utmost privacy, enveloped in lush foliage and tucked away in the white sand cove of Chaweng Noi Beach.

Website: starwoodhotels.com/luxury
Source: Starwood

Boutique & Design Hotel, Le Clervaux

JOI-Design was recently commissioned to transform the Hotel Central in Clervaux, Luxembourg, into Le Clervaux Boutique & Design Hotel. The 22 suite property features a private dining space as well as public restaurant, where the design firm have conceived three distinct styles for the suites.

Website: le-clervaux.com
Source: JOI-Design

Kempinski, Masai Mara

Kempinski Hotels has opened its all-inclusive Olare Mara Kempinski, Masai Mara Tented Camp. The company’s first property in Kenya accommodates a total of maximum 24 guests at any one time, with tents furnished in the classic style of the grand African safaris with four poster or twin beds, outdoor and indoor showers and a teak deck spread over 80sqm.

Website: kempinski.com
Source: Luxury Travel Insider

The Wellesley, London

The Wellesley, a new 36 room luxury townhouse hotel, has opened in London’s Knightsbridge, featuring a Cigar Lounge & Terrace with the UK’s largest bespoke humidor. Contemporary & classic style combining the building’s 1920s art deco design with stylish modern additions, such as the Crystal Bar with a Whisky & Cognac wall.

Website: thewellesley.co.uk
Source: Riva PR

Hilton, Zhongshan

Hilton Hotels & Resorts has opened in the Pearl River Delta, with the Hilton Zhongshan Downtown, owned by The Lihe Group. The hotel features 459 guest rooms including 34 suites; a variety of restaurants and bars, two ballrooms, as well as state-of-the-art meeting facilities and a recreation centre.

Website: hilton.com
Source: MICE Biz

For more in the series of The Latest Hotels, please see our most recent editions as follows:

- The Latest Hotels: St. Regis, Ritz Carlton & Aman Resorts
- The Latest Hotels: Westin, Banyan Tree & Shangri-La
- The Latest Hotels: Delano, Four Seasons & Kempinski

St Regis Rome unveils its Couture Suite designed by The Gallery at HBA London

More big names flock to the promise of China, as Four Seasons debut in Beijing, Banyan Tree launch in Shanghai, Shangri-La in Changzhou & Anantara on Hainan Island

If the past month is anything to go by, luxury hotels look set to replace luxury goods brands and suppliers as the next big thing in our industry’s M&A space.

In the past few weeks alone, Orient-Express Hotels rejected a $1.86 billion unsolicited takeover bid from an arm of the Tata Group of India, as it emerged that Four Seasons Hotel New York owner, H. Ty Warner, had received a bid for his 368-room luxury hotel in midtown Manhattan for about $900 million from an unidentified Asian buyer (Bloomberg).

The unsolicited bidder is allegedly affiliated with the government of Brunei, the kingdom located on the island of Borneo. Interestingly enough, it is the Brunei Investment Agency who now owns luxury hotel manager Dorchester Collection, which includes the Hotel Bel-Air in Los Angeles and the Beverly Hills Hotel in Beverly Hills.

This follows the sale of the controlling stake in New York’s iconic Plaza Hotel to India’s Sahara Group, the Setai Fifth Avenue Hotel to Hong Kong’s Great Eagle, Palazzo Versace Australia to a consortium of Chinese investors and Florence’s Grand Hotel Baglioni to Qatar Sovereign Fund. And this is just in the past few months.

As consumers demonstrate a preference towards ‘experiencing’ luxury rather than simply ‘owning’ luxury, one expects that investment interest in luxury hotels will continue.

Four Seasons, Beijing

Four Seasons Hotels has launched in Beijing, China, with a 313-room property that includes 66 luxury suites. Marrying Chinese influences and contemporary style, the hotel features a range of Western and Chinese artwork, throughout F&B outlets, the fitness centre, an executive lounge, event spaces and a spa inspired by the architecture of traditional Chinese tea gardens.

Website & Source: fourseasons.com/Beijing

Shangri-La, Changzhou

Shangri-La International Hotel Management, in collaboration with Qiaoyu Group, have debuted the Shangri-La Hotel in Changzhou, in one of China’s top business cities. The 350 guestrooms and suites range from 45 to 225sqm, all featuring floor-to-ceiling windows with unobstructed views of Lake Xihu or the city. The 4000sqm heath club is the largest in Changzhou, encompassing a fully equipped fitness centre, an indoor swimming pool and a spa.

Website: shangri-la.com/changzhou
Souce: HSyndicate

Anantara, Hainan Island

Anantara has arrived on Hainan Island with the launch of its Sanya Resort & Spa, inspired by oriental and Thai design. The property comprises of 122 rooms, suites and private pool villas, alongside four distinctive restaurants and bars. Spa Pool Villas face the ocean and offer a splendid 500sqm of living space, where guests benefit from the service of a personal Villa host.

Website: sanya.anantara.com
Source: Breaking Travel News

Majestic Hotel, Kuala Lumpur

The historic Majestic Hotel is set to reopen its doors in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, following an $82.5 million restoration program. The 300-room hotel, owned by YTL Hotels, was built in 1932 and previously housed the country’s National Art Gallery. The restored hotel will become the only Kuala Lumpur based member of The Leading Hotels of The World (LHW) group.

Website: majestickl.com
Source: Luxuo

Hilton Munich Park, Munich

The 484-room Hilton Munich Park has been re-imagined by JOI-Design, to reflect a style that draws upon its idyllic setting along the banks of the Eisbach Creek. Communal spaces feature laser-cut motifs of branches and birds, Tivoli oak wall panels and backlit glass sheets, whilst suites have been outfitted in warm earth and ripe berry tones.

Website: hilton.com/munich
Source: JOI-Design

Outrigger, Phi Phi Island

Outrigger has officially debuted its Phi Phi Island Resort and Spa, following a yearlong refurbishment of the former Phi Phi Island Village Beach Resort. 44 new Deluxe Garden Bungalows have been added, each featuring contemporary design with Thai touches, walk-in wardrobes, flat screen televisions, and iPod/iPhone docking stations. Food and beverage venues have been enhanced, and the gym has been improved.

Website: outrigger.com/phi-phi
Source: Hospitality.net

Westin Grand Central, New York

Starwood Hotels & Resorts has unveiled The Westin New York Grand Central, following a $75 million renovation of the former New York Helmsley Hotel. The brand’s second Manhattan hotel features a complete redesign of the hotel’s interior including 774 spacious guest rooms equipped with Westin’s signature amenities, such as energy-conserving LED and CFL lights, water conserving low flow plumbing and its ‘Heavenly Bed’.

Website: starwoodhotels.com/westin
Source: Luxury Travel Magazine

Hotel Maria Cristina, San Sebastian

Hotel Maria Cristina, a Luxury Collection Hotel in San Sebastian, has reopened its doors following an extensive $25 million, nine-month restoration. 107 luxurious guestrooms and 29 suites were re-imagined by The Gallery at HBA London, dressed in a pastel palette inspired by the fresh spring tints of macaron patisseries, with plush tufted headboards framed in curvaceous mouldings.

Website: starwoodhotels.com/espagne
Source: HBA London

Banyan Tree, Shanghai

Banyan Tree Hotels and Resorts has debuted its urban resort concept in Shanghai, On The Bund. Each of the guestrooms and suites feature an Expediency Box for pick-up and delivery of polished shoes, laundry and dry-cleaning, as well as six different pillow choices and rooms that are refreshed with a different therapeutic scent each day.

Website: banyantree.com/shanghai
Source: HSyndicate

For more in the series of The Latest Hotels, please see our most recent editions as follows:

- The Latest Hotels: Delano, Four Seasons & Kempinski
- The Latest Hotels: Jaipur, Casablanca & Vienna
- The Latest Hotels: London, Seville & Saint-Tropez

Four Seasons has completed its upgrade of its Tanzania property

Conrad by Hilton and Four Seasons debut in sub-Saharan Africa, as Aman launches in Greece, Shangri-La open on Hainan Island Ritz Carlton Reserve opens in Puerto Rico

Rapid expansion in the luxury hotel sector shows little sign of abating. A veritable onslaught of properties are set to open in 2013, not to mention the countless management and development deals that have been signed up until 2020.

Shangri La have announced plans to open properties in Mumbai, Bangalore, Istanbul, Qufu, London, West Shanghai, Doha, Lhasa and Ulaanbaatar in 2013 alone, with a Sri Lankan hotel expected to bow in 2014. Ritz-Carlton will open in Tianfu Square, Chengdu, located in the heart of the capital of Sichuan province.

Meanwhile Intercontinental Hotel Group has confirmed the redevelopment of the former Evason Phuket and Bon Island, in partnership with JTM (Thailand) Limited, which will launch as the InterContinental Phuket Rawai Beach Resort also in 2013.

Langham Hospitality Group announced the signing of an agreement with Huatang Grand Hotel Company Limited to manage a new, luxury hotel in Datong, Shanxi. The hotel will be branded Langham Place, Datong and is scheduled to open in 2014.

The Oetker Collection is gearing up to open L’Apogee Courchevel in Le Jardin Alpin in the French Alps in December 2013. As India’s premier snow and ski destination, Gulmarg, looks to the opening of The Khyber Himalayan Resort & Spa by the close of 2012.

Conrad Pezula Resort & Spa, Knysna

Hilton Worldwide has debuted its first Conrad-branded luxury property in sub-Saharan Africa, the Conrad Pezula Resort & Spa in Knysna, on the Garden Route of Western Cape. The 86-room Resort & Spa is set amid almost 2500 acres of indigenous grounds and offers sweeping views of the city’s famous lagoon and beyond to the Indian Ocean.

The Resort’s seven-room private castle, which is built into the cliff face and overlooks the secluded Noetzie Beach, offers guests the exclusive luxury of a private butler and chef.

Website: conrad.hilton.com/PezulaResort
Source: Hotelier Middle East

Shangri-La Haikou, Hainan Island

The new Shangri-La Hotel, Haikou, on Hainan Island, is located adjacent to the Hainan International Exhibition Centre, with an internationally renowned golf course and scenic coastal park just steps away. Each of the 337 guestrooms and suites feature an ocean view with spacious balconies, alongside iPod Dock systems, a pillow menu, plush beds and deluxe bathrooms with luxury amenities.

Website shangri-la.com/haikou
Source: Drinks Media Wire

St. Regis, Mauritius

St. Regis has launched in Mauritius, situated on the southwestern tip of the island, with 172 guestrooms and suites, each with a large terrace and stunning views of the Indian Ocean. Designed by Stauch Vorster Architects with interiors by Trevor Julius, the resort’s aesthetic was inspired by a Victorian sugar-baron’s manor house set in a historical estate.

The pinnacle accommodation – the lavish beachfront St. Regis Villa – features a private entrance, four bedrooms with private pools and gardens, dining areas, an infinity pool, a bar and a private spa treatment room.

Website: stregismauritius.com
Source: Superyachts.com

Amanzoe, Peloponnese

Amanzoe is Amanresorts’ third Mediterranean retreat, a 38-suite resort, Aman Spa and in the near future a number of Aman Villas. Situated on a hilltop close to the quaint town of Porto Heli on the east coast of the Peloponnese, the resort offers almost 360 panoramic sea views as well as a private Beach Club in a picturesque bay.

38 guest pavilions are arranged on different levels to maximise privacy and the breath-taking views over the
Aegean, each accessed through a stonewall courtyard that leads to spacious, high-ceilinged living and sleeping areas.

Website & Source: amanresorts.com/amanzoe

Ritz Carlton Reserve, Puerto Rico

Situated on 1,400 acres of the former Laurance Rockefeller estate, Dorado Beach, Ritz-Carlton Reserve features 100 spacious guestrooms and 14 one-bedroom suites that sit directly onto the beach. Floor-to-ceiling sliding doors entirely disappear onto seamless ocean views, while outdoor shower gardens, indoor showers with deep soaking tubs, individual infinity-edge pools, rooftop pools, and cabanas create an incomparable luxury experience.

Website: ritzcarlton.com//DoradoBeach
Source: Hospitality Design

Twelve at Hengshan, Shanghai

Starwood’s The Luxury Collection Hotels & Resorts, has opened Twelve at Hengshan in Shanghai, situated on the renowned tree-lined Hengshan Road. The residential-style urban retreat comprises 171 rooms, designed by New York-based hospitality design duo Yabu Pushelberg, featuring Chinese and contemporary furnishings, hand-painted Oriental screens, silk lanterns and Oriental latticework.

Website: starwoodhotels.com/luxury
Source: Fin Channel

Four Seasons, Tanzania

Following a rebrand and an extensive upgrade, Four Seasons Safari Lodge Serengeti, Tanzania has officially opened its doors. With a total of 77 guest rooms, including 12 suites with plunge pools and five freestanding villas with private swimming pools, the Lodge offers guests the ultimate in privacy. Each room has an elevated open-air sundeck, which provides views over the Serengeti and a truly intimate wildlife experience to its guests.

Website: fourseasons.com/serengeti
Source: Luxury Travel Magazine

La Corde des Alpes, Verbier

New to the Swiss resort of Verbier this December is Hotel Corde des Alpes – a luxurious hotel with innovative interiors mixing the best of old-school ski and the latest in Swiss chic. Comprising 34 suites and guest rooms and 14 exclusive residences for ownership, Corde des Alpes marks the latest offering from local hotel and restaurant entrepreneur Marcus Bratter.

Website & Source: cdaverbier.ch

For more in the series of The Latest Hotels, please see our most recent editions as follows:

- The Latest Hotels: Westin, Banyan Tree & Shangri-La
- The Latest Hotels: Delano, Four Seasons & Kempinski
- The Latest Hotels: Jaipur, Casablanca & Vienna