By Aubrey Rose A. Inosante, Reporter
LANSON PLACE Hospitality Management Ltd. (LPHM) is confident in the demand for meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions (MICE) facilities at its newly opened property in Pasay.
“I think our MICE demand is good, and our facilities there are good. It’s a good mixture of local MICE business and regional. Our facilities are heavily utilized,” Michael Hobson, chief executive officer of LPHM, said in an interview with BusinessWorld.
The first Lanson Place in the Philippines opened last April in Pasay, featuring a 390-key hybrid hotel and residences, in partnership with SM Hotels and Conventions Corp. (SMHCC).
Mr. Hobson said the firm works with the SM group to attract MICE events to Pasay and share accommodation demands.
Lanson Place Mall of Asia has a strategic location and benefits from being 15 to 20 minutes away from the airport, Mr. Hobson noted.
With the pandemic having previously dampened international travel due to restrictions and closures, hospitality firms are now trying to bounce back.
The official opening of Lanson Place Mall of Asia was postponed due to the pandemic, causing construction delays from obtaining materials and the availability of workers.
However, Mr. Hobson expressed confidence in the growth of the Lanson Place property in Pasay as it receives local weekend demand from the leisure sector, particularly from families and more.
He said the Filipino hospitality sector remains strong, benefiting from a “natural fun-loving hospitable attitude” and the widespread ability to speak English, which appeals to many overseas visitors.
Mr. Hobson added that “some of the best guest service in the world can be found in the Philippines.”
“Lanson Place is a small hotel company but with key resources spread over just a few properties. We are specialists in extended stay business which has enabled us to perfect the art of getting to know our guests well and creating communities,” he said.
This management style reflects his over 40 years of hospitality experience, starting from hotel and catering school in Sussex in the late 1970s. One of his first jobs was as a sales trainee for the industrial catering division of Grand Metropolitan in the UK.
“I came to Hong Kong from Singapore in 1985. In 1987, I joined Shangri-La Hotel company and worked for the Kuok family when it used to be a private company,” said Mr. Hobson, who is now based in Hong Kong.
He later joined several firms, including Omni Hotels Asia-Pacific, and previously the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group in 1994.
“It wasn’t until my retirement from Mandarin Oriental that this opportunity to come and run Lanson Place Hotel Management Co. Ltd. emerged and started after literally a three-day break, in January 2019,” he said.
WORKFORCEMr. Hobson, a seasoned hotelier, said that the industry is finding it increasingly difficult to recruit individuals who are willing to serve others and pursue a career in hospitality.
“It’s a tough industry. The ability to [engage] customers [for] their feedback, the interaction that one has, the degree that you have to go to in order to create that word of mouth,” he said.
The industry must inspire young people to pursue hospitality careers, as many hoteliers struggle to recruit for positions that were once highly desired.
Mr. Hobson emphasized that hotel general managers must hire the right people and ensure a satisfactory return to the owner by investing in critical areas and controlling costs.
Lanson Place also aims to enhance its sustainability practices by working with partners like NORDAQ for its overseas properties, eliminating single-use plastics, and using refillable glass bottles bottled on-site.
“When you’re doing the contracting with some of these multinationals unless you can demonstrate your sustainability practices, they won’t include you in their programs,” he said, adding that some choose the locations of their conference based on the hotel’s sustainability measures.
Mr. Hobson added that the company is working towards securing a Green Key certificate. The Green Key certificate is a standard in the field of environmental responsibility and sustainable operation within the tourism industry.
This certificate represents a commitment by businesses that their tourism establishments adhere to the strict criteria stipulated by the Foundation for Environmental Education, which promotes sustainable development through environmental education.
