Pascal Duchauffour, area vice president of the Ritz-Carlton Europe, Middle East and Africa, is a reputable name in the hospitality industry. His name was among the most 50 influential hoteliers in the region by Hotelier Middle East in 2012. Duchauffour discussed the Ritz-Carlton's expansion plans in the Gulf as well as the brand's growth around the world in an exclusive interview with Arab News.
How would you evaluate Dubai's recovery in the hospitality industry after the financial crisis and recession a few years back?
Dubai has definitely recovered very well and I think it was able to establish an infrastructure and support mechanism, to the roads, to the whole city and form the airlines, as a destination with all the activities. Moreover, when looking at the region overall, we see stable growth except some markets that are still challenged since the Arab Spring. However, the rest of the Middle East is doing very well.
We have learned about your latest additions to the hotels chain which is the Ritz-Carlton Vienna, can you tell us more about it?
The Ritz-Carlton Vienna was opened last year over the summer and it is right in the center of Vienna. It is designed to be a boutique hotel with a European style of four buildings that have been put together; it has done well since the opening and we are very proud of it. It is important for us to continue to position the Ritz-Carlton in Europe, and Vienna was a great destination for us.
Would you believe that a similar concept of boutique hotels could be suitable in Dubai?
I believe that it is possible to have boutique hotels in Dubai. As we have witnessed, Dubai is going after the luxury market with large hotels, but I think that there are definitely some areas in Dubai which can introduce some boutique, niche hotels with low inventory or higher level of luxury facilities and services. So, I believe we will see that happening in Dubai. As for the Ritz-Carlton, we have rolled out Reserve, our brand extension, and we just opened a few weeks ago on the Dorado beach. It is a concept where we favor more the exclusivity of the resort. It is a hotel with few rooms and most of them being villas with private pools, we focus on providing the guest a chance to get away from the rest of the world. We have a few more destinations coming for this brand extension such as Morocco, the Caribbean and other spots in Asia. The first Reserve we launched was in Krabi, Thailand, which is really a remote destination but once you are there it's really very intimate and that was the focus of the brand.
How would the brand extension differentiate the Ritz-Carlton, would it place the brand in a competitive advantage position?
This brand extension has allowed us to continue to grow as the Ritz-Carlton might not necessarily fit in every destination. Our hotel is usually of a mid-size in terms of the number of rooms and when you look at the experience we are trying to create and bring through the Reserve; you will need a look at a much smaller unit, which will be operated differently and that is why we decided to put it in a brand extension to be able to differentiate our position and give that special cache to that product.
Are there any plans for the Ritz-Carlton to grow in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, or any other part of the GCC?
After opening our property at DIFC two years ago, we have just opened the expansion of the Ritz-Carlton beach hotel around a month ago and it has 148 new guestrooms and the product is fabulous. Feedback received from our guests has been incredible. Now, we are renovating the existing hotel, which will be ready in one year. As for the region, we are in a continuous search of growth opportunities. We have lately opened the Ritz-Carlton Palace in Riyadh and we are currently looking for more expansion in Saudi Arabia because we think it is a very important market for us; we are looking at Jeddah and Makkah as potential locations to grow the brand. We find that the market in the Middle East is becoming vibrant. We are still in the construction stage in the Nile Ritz-Carlton, Cairo. We hope we can get it ready by next year.
How would you evaluate the customer perception of brand equity of the Ritz-Carlton in the Middle East and the GCC as opposed to Europe and the US in terms of staff commitment to the brand, given the facts of labor laws issues and the lack of hospitality institutions?
It is different indeed. You find labor in the US and even in Europe of individuals that might have gone through hotel schools and have a certain level of hospitality education. In this part of the world, it is true we might have some employees who come to us lacking that kind of education. However, it is a simple industry when you think of the jobs we do. There are some technicalities that you need to learn but a lot in service has to do with your personality, your desire to please people and really with your genuine approach. That you do not teach to people, it is either that they have it or they don't. The process is to find that individual that has that natural talent of wanting to satisfy and entertain people, as well as liking to be of service.
After that, we teach them the technicality of the job. What we have in the Middle East in terms of training is slightly different than the other parts of the world because we need to provide employees with the knowledge. Having said that, when we look at the performance of the hotel, the customer's feedback which we receive and the turnover, and the findings show that we do compete very well and the hotels are highly performing to the extent that the leaders who are formed here are now moving either to Asia, Europe or even America. I think that is a demonstration that our hotels in this part of the world is as good as anywhere else and I would say sometimes even better than anywhere else because of the desire and motivation by employees to work and grow. A lot of our industry has to do with people interaction and how you make them feel, and I think that the mentality in the Gulf, anywhere you go, is very hospitable, they are very proud of their cultures and they truly enjoy having people coming and visiting, which is an advantage. I feel very good about the service provided in our hotels in the region and we can always do better, it is part of our growth and development.
© Arab News 2013
