If they wanted to slowly "ramp up", they should have picked a different time of year to open. I would wager that in Kyoto November has the highest hotel occupancy rate of any calendar month.
And if they are short of experienced staff, they might have delayed the start of their afternoon tea until they were better on their feet. They could also have limited the number of rooms available for a while to ensure that guests do not have to wait 2-3 hours past stated checkin time to finally get their room. I'm sure that this is pissing off the many Japanese guests who stay just one night!
I think it looks like they got too greedy for their own good.
It is telling that on the PH Kyoto website, the Reviews page says that "50% (of guests) would recommend our property".