Wyndham Hotel Group continues to make strategic moves to raise its presence in the Asia-Pacific market after opening an Asian office in Hong Kong 15 months ago.
The group arrived in 1991 with the Ramada chain, and has since expanded its porfolio to include 325 properties across Asia, falling under the Wyndham, Wyndham Grand, Ramada, Howard Johnson, Days Inn or Super 8 brands. Of this figure, 270 are located in China alone. The company, which has long opted for the franchise model, is now focused on opening more managed properties to meet the robust demand for mid-scale accommodation.
Ken Greene, Wyndham president and managing director Asia-Pacific, said: “The hotels that suffered the most in the recession were mainly the high-end brands. There is a large middle class demographic that is starting to travel more, and that’s where we come in. We are targeting second-tier cities and eventually working our way up to the primary cities.”
The move has not prevented Wyndham from creating a luxury product, the 550-room Wyndham Xiamen which debuted last year. The tier has added five more: Wyndham Grand Plaza Royale West Lake Hangzhou, Wyndham Grand Plaza Royale Oriental Shanghai, Wyndham Bund East Shanghai, Wyndham Grand Plaza Royale Furongguo Changsha and Wyndham Grand Plaza Royale Chengdu.
More Wyndhams and Ramada hotels will be rolled out in the near future. The Wyndham pipeline includes Wyndham Grand Shanghai Baolian (2011), Wyndham Grand Hangzhou Xixi (first phase in 2011 and second phase in 2012), Wyndham Boao Resort (2013) and two more in Sanya (2017 and 2019). Ramada expects the launch of the contemporary, mid-range Ramada Encore Soi 10 in Bangkok next year as well as that of another Ramada in the city and three Ramada Plaza hotels in China: Ramada Plaza JiangJin, Ramada Plaza Qingxin and Ramada Plaza Zengcheng. In 2012, Bangkok will get a Ramada Plaza and Singapore's Zhong Shan Park, a Days Inn; and in 2013, the first Ramada enters the Lion City, also at at Zhong Shan Park in 2013.
The group is also looking at India and Vietnam as potential outposts, as well as planning to introduce more of its other brands into Asia. “We see lots of opportunity with the recent acquisitions of Planet Hollywood and Tryp,” declared Greene.
For more information, visit www.wyndhamworldwide.com
Alisha Haridasani
