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This month we had the pleasure to meet with Gerard Walker - General Manager of EQ Kuala Lumpur - who shared with us insights about the industry and his hotel & destination. 1000M - Can you tell us more about yourself and your career? GW - The hospitality profession is able to open up the world to the people who work in it, and I am a primary example. I dove straight in and never looked back. I’m Australian, born and raised in Sydney. I began my career with Sydney Hilton Hotel in 1998 as Bar Manager of the Marble Bar, and proved my mettle by winning the hotel’s 1999 Employee of the Year award. At that moment, I knew I could do well in this career and continue to love it for a long time. I’ve worked in various countries, including Australia, Mauritius, China, Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia. I carefully selected where I would go next to get new experiences and challenges; and each hotel received my dedication and passion in delivering high guest satisfaction and revenues. 1000M - What do you like the most about being a hotelier? GW - My profession has brought me to some of the most exciting cities in the world, allowed me to work with a range of talented, interesting, quirky, creative people from all walks of life, and underscored the fact that there are different ways to do things right. The pleasure I still get when the hotel guests gain a mind-blowing experience is something that never gets old. 1000M - The world has changed, what are the main challenges you face nowadays as a hotelier? GW - These days hospitality begins even before a prospective customer become a guest. Internet penetration, the profusion of content creators, the number of online booking sites, has got the industry on our toes because we now engage at a much greater depth with customers than we ever had before. Finding a voice on our electronic marketing, ensuring a corresponding follow through in our above and below the line marketing, training sales personnel to sell through both our attributes and hardware, as well as the soft touches, is challenging. But when you hit the sweet spot, it really is a thing of beauty and wonder! Further to that is the ever-increasing importance of the delivery of the service promises. Saying we are The Best of The Best may get views on our socials and reservations, but it is proving through our service and deliverables that we are as good as we say we are, which is the crux. I believe it is of paramount importance to do as we say. 1000M - Can you tell us more about your hotel and destination? GW - EQ, currently ranked number 1 in TripAdvisor and winner of the Best City Hotel in Malaysia 2022 by Travel + Leisure Asia, is the newest five-star luxury hotel in Kuala Lumpur. We have had a long tradition of hospitality, being one of the originators of luxury hospitality in Malaysia as the Hotel Equatorial and celebrating our 50th year of operations. In this redux, we deliver opulence, luxury and indulgence with a gorgeous, sustainably-engineered property. The hotel is also Green Building Index (GBI) Gold-certified, making it one of the most energy and resource-efficient buildings in the country. The city is vibrant, buzzy and cosmopolitan, but go down a side street, and you find yourself in older times, where history continues to happen alongside the progressive city. I feel that KL is the perfect juxtaposition of historical culture and modernity, a hotbed of frenetic energy from the flashy retail offerings and entertainment venues and simultaneously overlaid by the peaceful green spots scattered around the city. EQ takes that dynamism, and crafts it into superlative comfort, exemplary food options, a tranquil spa, as well as vibrant fine-dining and entertainment with some of the best city views, including unobstructed views of the Twin Towers and KL Tower.
THE INITIATIVE IS A SIGNIFICANT STEP AND A PILOT SCHEME WILL BE ROLLED OUT FIRST WITH THE SOFITEL BRAND IN DECEMBER 2020 Li Binghua, Division Director, Market Management Office, Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism and Gary Rosen, Chief Executive Officer, Accor Greater China, unveiled Accor’s biodegradable solution to replace single-use guest plastic bathroom amenities In an industry-first, Accor Greater China will replace single-use plastic bathroom amenities with a biodegradable solution. The roll-out is part of Accor’s commitment to reduce its impact on the environment and create positive, sustainable hospitality. A launch ceremony was held in Sofitel Shanghai Hongqiao on December 2, 2020, with the attendance from representatives for Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism Market Management Office, Accor management team, as well as professionals from industry associations and hospitality partners. In 2019, Accor committed to and delivered against the promise to eliminate plastic drinking straws, stir sticks and cotton buds. The next phase entails eliminating individual plastic amenities and cups as well as other single-use plastic items in guest rooms, meeting areas, restaurants and leisure activity areas to be achieved in the coming few years. Accor has been committed to a responsible attitude for 25 years and will now go further to reduce its impact on the environment. Accor is a signatory to the Global Tourism Plastics Initiative led by the United Nations Environment Programme to remove all single-use plastics in guest experiences from its hotels over the next few years. As a partner in this initiative, Accor strives to lead by example, drive action internally, share knowledge and initiate collaborations as a responsible industry leader. It is a significant step forward for the global hospitality industry and for Accor, which has been committed to sustainability for decades. Accor’s solution for its guest bathroom amenities is to replace them with a biodegradable solution encased in chic ceramic containers that incorporate contemporary designs. The solution was developed with a recognized international company that specializes in travel and hotel amenities solutions. The biodegradable capsule which holds the products is made from renewable raw plant materials including corn and cassava. As it is biodegradable, it is environmentally friendly with a lower ecological impact. The 290ml containers for shampoo, conditioner, shower gel and body lotion feature sealed polylactic acid (PLA) inner bottles to ensure the highest hygiene and practicality. This eco-innovation and environmental-friendly container was derived after a series of professional experiments, trials and testing conducted over the course of a year. This first of its kind solution is expected to help save more than 16 million of single-use plastic bathroom amenities bottles on average per year across Accor’s luxury and premium branded hotels in Greater China. Guests can experience the new Accor biodegradable solution at Sofitel luxury hotels across Greater China with Lanvin, Sofitel’s partner for bathroom amenities. Sofitel is the pilot brand for this new initiative in Greater China, with other Accor luxury and premium brands to follow in 2021. The initiative is in line with the Chinese Central Government’s ban of single-use plastics as the country’s active response to the negative impact of plastic pollution on health and ecology as announced in January 2020. Gary Rosen, CEO Accor Greater China, said: “We are honoured to lead the market as a pioneer in identifying and rolling out this innovative and sustainable initiative in Greater China. We aspire to set an example as a responsible corporate citizen while positively changing mindsets by adopting the logic of reduce, re-use and recycle. Our non-plastic amenities solution underscores our commitment to the environment and the communities where we operate our hotels. It is a holistic concept that fulfils many criteria including ecological impact, quality guest experience and excellent brand alignment.” Representative for the Shanghai Tourism Trade Association, Hotel Industry Division said: “Plastic pollution is one of the major environmental challenges of our time and we have an important role to play in contributing to the solution. We are glad to see that through the plastics ban initiative, hospitality companies and tourist destinations have creative solutions to innovate the way they reduce the use of plastics to advance circularity in our economies while reducing plastics pollution in China.” Sébastien Bazin, Chairman and CEO, Accor, said: “Our industry has a significant impact on the planet and we fully measure how key our responsibility is to create sustainable tourism for our employees, guests, suppliers, partners and host communities. We are proud that our teams in Greater China have taken a leading role to create unexpected solutions locally, and to inspire others.” ABOUT ACCOR Accor is a world leading hospitality group consisting of more than 5,000 properties and 10,000 food and beverage venues throughout 110 countries. The group has one of the industry’s most diverse and fully-integrated hospitality ecosystems encompassing luxury and premium brands, midscale and economy offerings, unique lifestyle concepts, entertainment and nightlife venues, restaurants and bars, branded private residences, shared accommodation properties, concierge services, co-working spaces and more. Accor also boasts an unrivalled portfolio of distinctive brands and approximately 300,000 team members worldwide. Over 65 million members benefit from the company’s comprehensive loyalty program ALL - Accor Live Limitless - a daily lifestyle companion that provides access to a wide variety of rewards, services and experiences. Through its Planet 21 – Acting Here, Accor Solidarity, RiiSE and ALL Heartist Fund initiatives, the group is focused on driving positive action through business ethics, responsible tourism, environmental sustainability, community engagement, diversity and inclusivity. Founded in 1967, Accor SA is headquartered in France and publicly listed on the Euronext Paris Stock Ex (ISIN code: FR0000120404) and on the OTC Market (Ticker: ACRFY) in the United States. For more information visit group.accor.com or follow Accor on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram. Accor Greater China Phyllis Sio April Ling Executive Director of Communications Communications Manager Phone: +86 159 2079 9606 Phone: +86 21 6119 9839 Email: Phyllis.sio@accor.com Email: April.Ling@accor.com