Key executives with two of the city’s leading hospitality companies share their insights on what they intend to do to meet challenges in the demanding MICE and luxury markets in Shanghai, which have grown more competitive in recent years.

Q: How large is your current portfolio in Shanghai and how do you expect it to grow over the next few years?

Lai: Kempinski has two properties in Shanghai. Located in Lujiazui, Grand Kempinski Hotel Shanghai consists of 686 guestrooms with 70 percent of the rooms facing the Bund.

Grand Kempinski Hotel Shanghai has a total of 1,850 square meters of floor space for meetings, conferences and events, including the pillarless Grand Ballroom which can accommodate up to 800 guests. In addition, its auditorium has 120 seats overlooking the Huangpu River.

The ONE, a residential hotel in Puxi, is created to offer a different option for corporate guests in a city with cookie-cutter luxury hotels; a spacious, home-like space in which to relax without sacrificing the comfort of a five-star hotel.

Currently, Kempinski Hotels has operated 20 hotels in China.

In 2014, Kempinski Hotels China will open two properties in Beijing and Changsha. The Yanqi Lake Kempinski Hotel Beijing will comprise 307 guestrooms and suites, the 111-room Yanqi Lake State Guest House, 12 boutique hotels, a marina and an 18-hole golf course.

Devins: Four Seasons has two properties in Shanghai. The first Four Seasons hotel in China was opened in Shanghai Puxi in 2002 and China has been part of our strategic growth plan for more than a decade, and will continue to be a critical component of our growth strategy in the future.

The new Four Seasons Hotel Pudong, Shanghai, opened in 2012 and located in the center of Lujiazui, represents the modernism and vibrancy of Shanghai while our first property in Puxi is immersed in the city’s cultural atmosphere, with nearby Nanjing Road and Huaihai Road offering endless shopping and entertainment.

Q: Are there any campaigns you are going to launch this year to further strengthen your brand image as competition among internationally branded hotels continues to intensify with more hotels being opened across the city?

Lai: The conventional way to promote our brand and products through trade and road shows remain important, However, moving into 2014, we are going to do more to attract the “Generation Y Organizers” who are impacting the purchasing decision. Kempinski MICE e-brochures and RFP are available for all regions and can be accessed on our website. Our prospective clients can source Kempinski hotel information with rich visuals instantly without spending extra time to download. This is a very powerful, cost effective and greener way to deliver our products. Another key initiative is to raise the  service standard and promote our “Miracle Workers” — staff members who get “impossible” requests from guests and make them possible.

Devins: Four Seasons has much to offer our guests. For example, we have a recent offer and campaign called China by Four Seasons campaign, which involves eight Four Seasons properties in China designed to showcase our collection of Chinese properties to both domestic and international travelers.

We also have joined with HHTravel on a luxury round-the-world trip that departs Shanghai and Beijing in early December for 13 luxurious destinations. The trip’s first destination is Four Seasons Resort Maldives and its last is Four Seasons Sydney, where guests celebrate New Year’s Eve. There is room for only 20 lucky passengers. Cost is 495,000 yuan per person.

We are about to launch a promotional partnership with Coach, in which 14 hotels with very special offers will participate. The promotional package features a valuable gift voucher from Coach. Both of our hotels in Shanghai are participating as well as 12 others both within and outside of China.

Q: What do you think of the supply-demand situation in the city’s upscale and luxury hotel market? Are there any challenges you are encountering to maintaining long-term, solid growth here?

Lai: The numbers of competitors within the Pudong and Shanghai market continues to grow. Some competitors are focused on lowering prices rather than providing additional benefits to clients. But Kempinski feels this is not the way forward. For instance, Grand Kempinski Hotel Shanghai will launch the promotion “Meet for Free.” During this promotion, a minimum of 50 guest rooms for two consecutive nights will enjoy a host of free benefits: a welcome cocktail on the hotel’s top floor, upgraded theme tea breaks, free use of AV equipment, and more.

Devins: It’s no secret that there is more competition now than ever in the luxury hospitality space. We know that luxury hotel guests today have higher expectations than ever. We are in the business of exceeding expectations.

In this environment of fierce competition, we believe that the only sustainable differentiator is our ability to customize the guest experience, to truly understand their needs (known and unarticulated) and to deliver against them for a memorable experience at all levels. Our guests come back to Four Seasons because we focus on highly personal experiences — full customization — knowing and understanding our guests and their preferences. It is what separates us from the competition and why Four Seasons has always been and will continue to be the leader in luxury hospitality.

As a leader, we are confident that we know what our guests want better than anyone else. To keep our competitiveness in the market, we regularly evaluate our programs and services to ensure that each guest interaction is living up to the experience we’re trying to create. Being relentless in our pursuit of excellence, we are focused, company-wide, on continuously evolving our products and services.

Four Seasons was founded on a single principle that transcends time and geography, religion and culture: the Golden Rule — the simple idea that if you treat people well, the way you would like to be treated, they will do the same. Our vision is inextricably guided by this philosophy, defining the people we hire and partner with, the properties and experiences we create and our future priorities.

Q: Do you consider MICE business an important engine for your future revenue/profit growth? How do you expect the overall MICE market in Shanghai to develop over the next couple of years?

Lai: The MICE market continues as our main market segment across China. For Shanghai, this important revenue generator is an integral part of the success of our properties since Shanghai is a city that no one wants to miss.

Having said that, we also need to be mindful of the rising appeal of other cities in China as event destinations.

Devins: The MICE market continues to realize huge potential across China, among both domestic and international travelers. We believe the MICE market in Shanghai will also be the same.

We deeply understand face-to-face meetings are an integral part of Chinese business culture and it is recognized as one of the best ways to connect with clients and colleagues. So the MICE market will continue to be an important area of focus for the brand. We will continue to position Four Seasons as the venue of choice for MICE clients, underscoring the brand’s premier locations, world-class facilities and standards of excellence. The level of service that Four Seasons provides enables groups to make the very most of their time. Creating a word-of-mouth effect is a powerful motivator and we will continue to host exceptional events that highlight our experience.