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Monday Nov 18, 2024
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By Marianne David
Q: With its opening scheduled for May, OZO will become the first international star-class hotel to set up operations in the Sri Lankan market post-war. How would you describe the property’s offerings and potential and what can guests expect?
For more information about OZO, visit www.ozohotels.com.
A: We’re planning on a soft opening in May. As far as offerings are concerned, the hotel is 158 rooms falling into four categories. We’ve named our rooms a little bit different from the traditional standard, deluxe, etc. The categories are Sleep, Dream and Dream Ocean plus the suite.
We have a grab-and-go concept in the form of a counter in the lobby, O2Go. It’s for people who may not have the time to sit down and have a half-an-hour breakfast so to say. It’s tea, coffee, croissants, pastry, wraps and so on. It’s all nutritious and quick for guests who are off for a business meeting or a tour.
OZO spaces
Spot: Reception for speedy, paperless check-in
Tone: Fitness room
Splash: Swimming pool
Talk: Meeting room with capacity for eight persons
Aqua: Function space for 170 pax
Connect: Web bar and information lecterns
Eat: All-day dining restaurant
ON14: Rooftop bar and lounge
O2GO: Grab-and-go outlet
We have an all-day dining restaurant, called Eat, for breakfast, lunch and dinner. We have function space for 170 pax, called Aqua. Then we have our rooftop bar and lounge, called ON14. During the day it’s a pool bar and come five o’clock, it turns into a bar and lounge. It will serve offerings such as tapas and sharing platters for casual dining in the open. Also on the rooftop you find the swimming pool, Splash, and the gymnasium, Tone. Our meeting room is called Talk. We’ve done things a little differently with the names of the outlets to make it fun and a little casual.
Even in the lobby area, as you walk in you will see it’s not the traditional counter with the staff standing behind; it’s an island in the middle of the reception area and we call it the Spot. Our internet area is called Connect.
OZO is a predominantly business hotel due to our location being in the city but we are obviously marketing for leisure groups as well, if they want to come in for one or two nights prior to flying out or on arrival.
"I think Sri Lanka’s potential is massive and that is one of the key factors we decided to set up three hotels here. Since 2009 post-war, you see hotels coming in, you see infrastructure improving. It’s because we see huge potential in tourism here that we have strategically placed three properties in Colombo, Kandy and Galle"
Q: How is the OZO brand being positioned in Sri Lanka and what are the key differentiators it will offer to stand out from the competition?
A: I think we’re the first hotel in Sri Lanka – and this is also still relatively new even in other parts of the world – to introduce paperless check-in. There’s no paper or registration card; it’s all done by iPad. The front counter has built-in iPads and we’re trying to make the check-in process as quick and stress-free as possible. Time is important to people and they don’t want to be standing around the lobby for 20 minutes.
We don’t have room compendiums. We do everything on IPTV, everything is digital. It’s all state-of-the-art. With IPTV, you can check your flight times, your bill, room service menus, the weather… everything is done electronically. If we want to update something, we can do it electronically without having to pull out a page and print it again.
At the front counter we have passport scanners which interface into the front office system, so you don’t have to run around photocopying people’s passports and attaching it to registration cards.
We’ve trying to make the whole process quicker, easier and greener.
We also do things differently by not taking ourselves too seriously. We don’t compromise on the guest experience but if you have a chance to look at our website, it’s a little bit more fun; it’s not a very formal and typical structured hotel set-up as far as collaterals and websites and things are concerned. We’re a bit more casual.
We cut out all the frills and try to give people what they want and what people generally want is a good night’s sleep, a comfortable bed, a quiet room – we’ve got double-glazed glass so it’s nice and quiet and blackout curtains to make it dark, we’ve got the room temperature correct so it’s not too cold and not too hot… Sleep is one of the key pillars for us. Another pillar is a nutritious meal.
The third is connectivity. The whole hotel is completely wireless and it’s complimentary; we don’t see why we would have to charge guests for that. We also need to make sure that it’s quick, efficient and effective – there’s no use having internet if it drops out all the time or is slow, which is annoying to a guest.
Another thing that’s different is the guest lectern, which is in the lobby. It has preloaded information of 24, 48 and 72 hours so if someone’s here for a day, it suggest things for them to do and helps them plan their day. They don’t have to stick to it obviously, but it’s better than Googling what to do in Sri Lanka.
Some of the things are common things you’d expect – like ‘go to the museum’ and ‘go to Galle Face’ – but other things are like ‘go to Pilawoos and try the hoppers’ or ‘go to so-and-so to buy silk’ or ‘go to the Pettah Market’. It’s a bit off the beaten track. We want to give our guests some of the traditional experiences and also experiences that are different.
In terms of positioning in Sri Lanka, we say we’re a mid-market brand which is in line with the Sri Lankan four-star standard.
Q: What were your first impressions of the country and what are your views on Sri Lanka’s potential as a tourism product?
A: I’ve lived here now for 10 months but I’ve been to Sri Lanka about five or six times prior to living here, sometimes for work and sometimes for leisure. I would say I had a pretty good idea on what to expect from Sri Lanka. I’ve also worked with many Sri Lankans overseas so I knew the nature of Sri Lankans and how to work with them.
I think Sri Lanka’s potential is massive and that is one of the key factors we decided to set up three hotels here. Since 2009 post-war, you see hotels coming in, you see infrastructure improving. It’s because we see huge potential in tourism here that we have strategically placed three properties in Colombo, Kandy and Galle.
Q: When you came to Sri Lanka to take on this new role, what were the main things you wanted to focus on and what are your plans for the future?
A: We are introducing a totally new brand into Sri Lanka, a brand that is also new to the world. We have been developing the brand since 2010 and believe there is a gap in the market for a good quality mid-market hotel like OZO. We rolled out the first OZO hotel in Hong Kong about five months ago, the second was opened last week under the OZO brand in Chaweng Samui in Thailand, Colombo will be third, followed by Penang in Malaysia, then it would be Kandy, followed by Galle. That’s just the OZO brand and we think there’s a good market and a good place for OZO in the industry.
Q: The ONYX Hospitality Group isn’t new to you. Could you tell us about your other assignments with the group?
A: I’ve been with the group for two-and-a-half years and this is my third country and third property during my time with them. Earlier I opened up an Amari property in Doha for ONYX Group and prior to that I rebranded a hotel for Amari in the Maldives. Here it’s a bit different because it’s three hotels and it’s probably going to take us around there years to open up these hotels. I am based here in Colombo as the Regional General Manager as well as the Property GM for the three hotels. We will appoint Hotel Managers for the three hotels, all of which I will oversee. I would say potentially we will open Colombo in May, Kandy next May and then Galle probably two years away since we haven’t broken ground there yet.
Q: How did you entry into the hospitality industry come about and could you trace your journey over the years?
A: A long time… I’ve been in the industry for almost 22 years. In Australia in Year 10 you do work placement where you get to choose an industry you think you want to work in and do two weeks of work placement and I chose to work in a hotel. For some crazy reason, I wanted to be a front office manager when I was 15 years old, so I went and worked in a hotel for my work experience. For some reason I said I want to work in hospitality when I grow up and to be a front office manager was my dream.
After my A Levels, I went and studied hospitality management and I was also working in a hotel while I was studying. I started my career in front office and then slowly worked my way up until I became a GM back in Australia. I worked in a number of different hotels and resorts in Australia and then I wanted to branch out overseas and my first posting was in the Maldives, where I did a pre-opening for a Singapore-based company. I was there for two-and-a-half years. I then went to work in the Philippines for a small five-star boutique property which was a hotel, golf course and casino. Then I joined ONYX.
It’s been a rollercoaster but it’s what I love – I don’t know anything else. I don’t have a backup. If hotels for some reason all stop tomorrow, I will be unemployed. This is the only industry I know and I love it. I am happy to be in it.
Q: How are things progressing with the two OZO properties in Kandy and Galle and when will they be operational?
A: Kandy is well underway and is fully under construction now. I would say about 12 months after we open Colombo, Kandy will be ready to open. It’s in a great location, virtually on the lake and close to the Temple of the Tooth and the Kandy City. The other good thing is that it’s another brand new hotel. All the properties in Sri Lanka are new, they are not refurbishments. For Galle, we’re waiting on a date for groundbreaking. I’m hoping it’s going to be in the next few months.
Kandy is 122 rooms with F&B, no banqueting. It will also have a rooftop bar and pool, but the bar won’t be as elaborate. Galle will be a full beachfront resort with multi F&B so it will have multiple outlets, quite large banqueting facilities and a day spa. All the properties will be exactly the same brand. I think that is one of the things that will set us apart. There are other international hotels coming in but no one will have new hotels of the same standard and brand in three strategic places.
Q: How would you describe the challenge of establishing three brand new hotels in Sri Lanka and what are your expectations of the properties?
A: We have high expectations of the brand. We obviously want to successfully open Colombo, which would be the benchmark for Kandy and Galle. If people receive a nice experience here, dine here, or stay here, that will set us up in terms of creating awareness in the market and in the trade. What we do here in Colombo will obviously flow through to Kandy and Galle.
The biggest challenge so far is probably recruitment for the hospitality industry. So many Sri Lankans in this industry go abroad and there is a huge dearth. Many go to the Middle East and to the Maldives. It’s not to say there isn’t good staff here, but it’s difficult.
We’re lucky we have a broad range of staff; some have worked overseas, some have worked in Sri Lanka, and some are fresh out of graduate school. We’re done with employing for the Colombo property and all the staff are on board. They’re already here and have started training, which is another key important thing. We’re doing training as we speak, locally and from Bangkok. For bar training, we’re bringing in an overseas consulting company. We’re putting a lot of time, money and effort into training.
Q: How will the OZO properties give back to the communities in which they operate?
A: As a group ONYX is heavily involved in CSR, in a lot of schools and hospitals. A key CSR focus for OZO is water. We’ve adopted water as the OZO topic we’re going to work on. Whether that in Sri Lanka means working with villages to provide safe water or whether it is to work on projects for wells for more water, it’s a water focus. As a group we also do things like the Green 2020. All our properties will have glass water bottles and no plastic, in addition to the paperless focus. We will be heavily involved in the community and giving back.
Q: What do you see as the key things Sri Lanka needs to improve on with regard to tourism and how do you view the ongoing development and tourism push?
A: The key thing to focus on here is consistency. We will have to do the same. Consistency levels are up and down in certain hotels, restaurants and bars. As an industry which is now progressing and going to get better in the next couple of years, we all need to ensure that service levels are consistent across the board.
The Sri Lanka Tourism Board is doing its marketing and promotions and individual hotels are doing a lot as well. We will do a lot and attend trade shows; we will be promoting the brand and promoting Sri Lanka as well. I think the opportunities for Sri Lanka and the growth over the next two to three years are huge. Tourist numbers are increasing and I think it’s only going to get better.
Q: What are your thoughts on the hotel industry and emerging trends globally?
A: There’s a good market for good quality mid-market hotels and that’s why we’ve created the OZO brand, which we will roll out in a number of countries. Travel patterns are changing and travellers don’t want to spend so much on a hotel anymore. They want a nice, clean hotel, a quiet room to sleep in and good meals and you want to be able to spend that money on an experience, a tour, a gift from the area or something like that. The needs of millennial travellers are also changing.
A mid-range hotel with less frills that gives people what they want allows you to be competitive with your pricing as well. That’s the essence of OZO. We’ve put in time and money to launch this brand because we believe there definitely is a place for OZO in Sri Lanka and around the world in the hospitality business.
