EDITOR’S Note

Welcome to the Hotelier column which profiles the industry skills and personalities of the highly regarded professionals running major hotels in the Yangtze River Delta.

January 2018 is going to mark German native Gregor Wateler’s 20-year service at Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts, a leading luxury hospitality group in Asia Pacific and one of the world’s finest hotel owners and operators. Seven months later in August, Pudong Shangri-La, East Shanghai, the group’s flagship property in China which recently came under his stewardship, is going to celebrate its 20-year anniversary of grand opening. A happy coincidence, indeed.

“The hotel is going to have its 20th anniversary next year and we are looking at some enhancement as the behavior and demand of travelers are changing,” the newly onboard general manager told Shanghai Daily during a recent interview. “Health clubs, for instance, are now more in demand and we are also looking at some other kinds of food as we plan to alternate one or two of our F&B outlets.”

Ideally situated in the heart of the Lujiazui Finance and Trade Zone, a major financial and banking center in the region, Pudong Shangri-La, East Shanghai has been renowned for its unparalleled location, deluxe hardware and authentic Asian hospitality since it opened its River Wing in 1998 as the first luxury hotel in the area. The addition of its Grand Tower in September 2005 further consolidated its leadership in the market by placing the iconic property in a class of its own as an exclusive hotel-within-a-hotel.

“This is a big and beautiful flagship Shangri-La hotel in a very special location and well-established reputation and I feel so proud to be here,” said Wateler, who began to oversee the 951-room riverfront property in mid September after staying at the helm of Kerry Hotel Pudong, Shanghai, a lifestyle brand under the same group, for nearly four years. “We will continue to promote our great facilities and the five core service values of ‘Respect, Humility, Courtesy, Helpfulness and Sincerity’ to extend our success by creating family and home feel experiences for our customers.”

Spectacular location

Guests staying at both towers of the hotel — the 576-key River Wing and the 375-key Grand Tower — are entitled to stunning views of the city’s historic Bund, the mighty Huangpu River, as well as the fast-evolving skylines of Pudong, one of China’s most vibrant frontiers of reform and opening up. The hotel also boasts 10 cutting-edge designer restaurants, bars and lounges and one of the largest hotel banquet and meeting venues in Shanghai with a total of over 8,000 square meters of versatile indoor and outdoor event space.

A seasoned hotelier whose professional stints have spanned Europe, Southeast Asia and a couple of Chinese cities, Wateler has acquired extensive experience to steer a hotel of this size, both comfortably and confidently.

“We have registered very good business this year with demand from domestic travelers being strong,” the new general manager said. “Disney has spurred a lot of demand and we’ve seen a great increase in leisure guests because many of them like to combine the Bund location with (our) quite close location to Disney.”

The MICE (meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions) segment also performs well at the hotel, which boasts supreme facilities led by two pillar-free ballrooms with a capacity to accommodate 1,500 and 1,700 guests, respectively, for cocktail reception.

“For next year, we are looking at double-digit growth,” said Wateler, a 27-year hotel veteran. “MICE, basically our biggest segment that contributes more than 35 percent of the hotel’s business, will certainly remain our key growth engine.”

In addition to continuously promoting its facilities, Pudong Shangri-La, East Shanghai is particularly looking at outside catering to facilitate its growth in the sector.

“We have recently got the outside catering licence issued by the Shanghai Food and Drug Administration, something that only a few hotels in the town have managed to obtain,” Wateler said. “The market is growing and getting more sophisticated as people find it more exciting to have their dinner next to the Huangpu River, in a factory, in an art studio or in a museum rather than in a hotel as they are looking for a more engaging experience.”

The hotel is looking at five to 10 outside catering a month through cooperation with companies, according to Wateler.

In fact, before gearing up to fully tap the emerging consumer trend, the hotel has already made some innovative efforts to adapt to the changing culinary culture.

In one of its latest successful endeavors, the hotel, in cooperation with the “Hello, My Name is Paul Smith” exhibition, by renowned English fashion designer Paul Smith, launched last month a new art series and afternoon tea at the Lobby Lounge.

Available through January 8, 2018 and designed to bring art lovers and diners a sense of luxury through seeing, feeling and tasting, the themed afternoon tea, featuring beautiful creations such as prawn mango tobiko sandwich, peach jelly and atrawberry mousse with choux, all inspired from Paul Smith’s work and tiered in artistic presentation, has received a very positive response from the market.

The 3D Journey with Marco Polo, a six-course themed menu ready for booking at its Jade on 36 Restaurant, is an even better example showing that culinary imagination has no boundaries.

The first hotel to launch the “3D Le Petite Chef — Marco Polo series” in the Chinese mainland, Pudong Shangri-La, East Shanghai has combined gastronomy and entertainment with 3D animation.

Guests will be impressed by the city skyline’s magnificent views, while savoring culinary delights from the restaurant’s talented chefs, along with the playful animation of a miniature chef who invites himself to a table of guests to “prepare” meals right before their eyes.

“Shanghai is a big and dynamic city, one of the capitals of the world and still a meeting point between foreigners and locals with a lot of potential for events,” the general manager said. “It is always exciting to come up with new ideas and create different experiences and products for our guests.”

Combining gastronomy and entertainment with 3D animation, Jade on 36 welcomes Marco Polo intrigue, as all your senses are tended to with culinary expertise to present an entertaining six-course set menu especially for your year-end parties.

Gui Hua Lou serves a variety of Huaiyangnese, Shanghainese and Sichuanese cuisine. Led by Huaiyangnese master chef Gao Xiaosheng, Gui Hua Lou is a perfect place for family reunions, business meals and friend’s gatherings. Recommended dishes: Shanghai-style sweet pork ribs, curry prawns served with deep-fried buns, sautéed crab roe and egg white served with mashed peas and braised Lion’s Head meat balls in brown sauce.