Hong Kong will welcome its first St. Regis in April. The hotel is located in Wan Chai and is within walking distance to the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC) and the Grand Hyatt. The new property has only 112 rooms and 17 suites, lower than the average of 300 rooms among its counterparts in other cities.
“We are in a very unique situation with 129 rooms, [that] means we are allowed to be a little picky, to choose who we allow to stay in our hotel,” Derek Flint, general manager, told CEI.
From a luxury standpoint, Flint emphasised that the relatively smaller number of rooms allows St. Regis to better personalise its services to guests. “We are in a great situation... we have 300 employees [service staff] for 129 guests, that’s more than two employees for every guest,” Flint said.
The brand’s most notable form of personalisation is its signature butler service for every guest. Chief Butler Dorothy Patai currently manages a team of 30 butlers for the property.
“We are able to be there and fulfill the needs of our guests. Some of the hotels may not be able to do so because of their size. It’s not anything to do with whether it is a well-run hotel or not, it’s just because of our size that we are able to do it,” said Flint.
In terms of event spaces, the ballroom at St. Regis is located at the adjacent China Resources Building.
On the impending opening of Rosewood Hong Kong, Flint believes that the location of Rosewood, which is on the Kowloon island, compared to St. Regis on Hong Kong island, may help to minimise competition for corporate clients. Furthermore, venues on Hong Kong island are usually the preferred choice of planners.
“I think competition is always healthy, you step up your game because of that,” said Flint. “I think the demand in Hong Kong is so good that it can afford two new players, we think it is a good thing,” said Flint.