livefromtuscany

so where is 5Khours' trip report...?

deer

- Additional to the recently opened Amandayan, this year will see the opening Aman Playa Grande, Dominican Republic; and Amanshima in Mie Prefecture, Japan.

- Since Japan is the third biggest guest market for the group, Aman will open more hotels in Japan, including the project in Shima and a potential one in Kyoto.

- Aman is "keen to find hotels in South America and Africa".

- The Portugal Aman in Alentejo region could soon join

- The five-lodges-project in Gabon is still on the drawing board

- Aman was also looking at several projects in Mozambique and said a project combining a tented camp in the Galapagos with a hotel in Ecuador’s Quito would also be desirable, as would projects in Mexico and Peru

http://www.ttgdigital.com/ttg-luxury...695113.article

spylaw4

Hmph! Potential for brand dilution - too many, too quick! Add those to the ones D wants in major cities......

chinmoylad

I don't think any of the city ones are opening any time soon - they need to find space first. I reckon it'll be at least 3-5 years before we see another city hotel.

And a lot of the other ones are just 'projects' at this stage. 2-3 opening this year, followed by another 2-3 next year is fair enough.

vuittonsofstyle

Olivia Richli, the GM at Aman Canal Grande just quit. She has been with Aman for 20 years.

Pierre&C�dric

I'll be there in less than 3 weeks. Shall I worry?

bhrubin

I do think Aman needs to expand or it may find itself losing out to other luxury chains that are already expanding into its fertile territory. A key to success in business is to always expand...smartly.

Aman is likely to find success when it expands into remote locales that have always been its bread-and-butter--creating destinations where none previously existed and where competition doesn't exist and isn't likely to follow. Africa and South America offer many fantastic opportunities, and its newer properties in Greece, Turkey, Utah, Vietnam, and Montenegro have shown that such locations can bring success.

I am not a personal fan of Aman expansion into cities, but risk is always a factor in business. If Aman can make those urban properties work, it certainly will increase their brand recognition. That potentially can funnel increased business to its other more remote locations for customers who otherwise might not have considered such remote destinations.

That being said, I am not as interested in the urban retreat philosophy that Aman is trying to create in the city properties. I've only been to one--Aman Summer Palace in Beijing--but it left us a bit cold. That may have been as much about Beijing as it was the Aman Summer Palace, but it certainly hasn't encouraged us to consider or look forward to other urban properties. But we opt for more remote properties, anyway, so we clearly are not of the demographic that Aman is now targeting.

Those who are upset with the "change" in Aman marketing and branding are perhaps being a bit narrow-minded. Aman Beijing and Venice and Tokyo have not in any way changed our experience at the other more traditionally remote Aman properties. Perhaps Aman can strike the balance between the two, much as Four Seasons and Belmond have done. Aman's biggest danger is in expanding too quickly such that it cannot deliver its impressive Aman "sense of place with tremendous service" product...and only time can tell us if that is in danger.

vuittonsofstyle

Those who are upset with the "change" include many of Aman's key staff. Are they being narrow-minded?

bhrubin

I can't speak for anyone else, of course. Change in any business model or corporate structure doesn't always please everyone--customers and employees alike. That doesn't always mean the change is for the worse, though. Just ask Apple when Steve Jobs took over and changed the direction of that company--which angered many current employees at that time, too. Yet Apple soared to new heights as a result of the change, and current customers and employees are quite happy that he made those changes!

Change is difficult for many to absorb. Just because the changes are happening and some Aman staff do not appreciate those changes and are leaving does not mean that the Aman product for customers will be worse as so many are assuming. It just means that there are changes in the direction that Aman is taking and that those changes are not pleasing all of the staff. It doesn't necessarily reflect on the quality of the experience for customers.

I can appreciate that Aman staff may or may not like changes to the Aman model or their employment...but that applies still more to their own circumstances and less to the concomitant customer experience at Aman, IMO.Employees are free to do what they feel they must in response to the changes, but that doesn't necessarily impact customers. Until it impacts the customer experience, I am withholding judgment. Just because GMs and other staff don't like change doesn't mean that those changes are for the worse for me.

I still think everyone is jumping the gun on these changes at Amanresorts. Only time will tell if the customer experience is injured. Assuming that Aman's corporate brand and management changes and the like will hurt the Aman customer experience is premature, IMO. As long as Aman's customer experience is better than that of its high-end competition, I will be happy to wait and see.

Sometimes changes are for the worse, and sometimes changes are for the better. Change in and of itself isn't necessarily a bad thing as most people seem to be assuming it will be for Aman.

I'll be back at Aman at Amangiri for our first visit to that property in April. I'll have a chance to see for myself what changes may or may not have been made to the Aman experience.

spylaw4

Yes of course you can't please all of the people ....etc.etc.

What is really important IMO is recognising when change turns out to be for the worse. And then actually doing something about it - even possibly reverting to the previous ways instead of going off at yet another tangent.

Interesting news about 'kila GM - we'll be there in a couple of weeks; when does Claudia leave? Perhaps we'll meet the new GM?

Aventine

My first Aman experience in Tokyo was frustrating. F&B was done well but an unresponsive spa manager and GM (until taking the matter higher) left me stunned. I don't know if it was the non-chalant personalities of the personnel or arrogance at being the newest flavor of the month in Tokyo?

bhrubin

I'm sorry to hear that. To be fair, most new properties take a while to get the kinks sorted out, as they train new staff--even as they have staff from other properties there to assist and help in the training. IMO, it takes at least a year on average for a new property at even the most luxe level to get service to where it's meant to be. Just look at the chilly reception the Pen Paris has received for perspective.

That being said, I also think that urban hotels are a tougher sell for Amanresorts. They lose their unique "sense of place" and the concomitant service edge with so much more luxury competition and the fact that cities are overwhelmingly less sensuous in many ways to the Aman sense of tranquility that allows one to embrace the local feel.

As I said previously:

I expect to avoid most of the new urban Aman retreats. Though if they can match the Aman-like sensibilities of a place like the Upper House in Hong Kong, I'd be more interested. Then again, the Upper House doesn't quite charge Aman rates.

deer

The new Ahn Luh brand has updated their website - and how they have:

Seven resorts in the making, with opening dates from 2015 till 2018!

All looking very chinese, very special, very tempting, in between 35 Villas (brillantly private!) and 120 rooms (way to large for real luxury). Four of them in the Shanghai / Hangzhou proximity, but each one with different scenery from ocean via lake to mountain - so I see brillant roundtrips, of course in combination with Amanfayun:

- Ahn Luh Zhujiajiao, Shanghai, China. Located at "the picturesque bridges of a historic ancient Shanghai canal-lined suburb", it houses 35 villas built in traditional Chinese style and includes a museum, library, restaurants and spa and tai chi centre. First spotted by south_sea99. http://en.ahnluh.com/destinations/zh..._overview.html Now announced as the first Ahn Luh for 2015.

- Ahn Luh Lanting, Kuaiji mountain in Shaoxing, situated in the Zhejing province 30 minutes from Hangzhou. First spotted here by KrazeeJoe, first announced for fall 2014, then for second, now for first half of 2015: http://en.ahnluh.com/destinations/la..._overview.html

- Ahn Luh Thousand Islands; 2 hours from Hangzhou, named after a salad dressing, but nevertheless the first Ahn Luh Villa Resort next to a fantastic looking lake: http://en.ahnluh.com/destinations/th..._overview.html. Opening 2016.

- Ahn Luh Dujiangyan in Chengdu, which "is a project where the historical and cultural elements feature prominently given that the Dujiangyan Irrigation System, along with Mount Qingcheng, are placed together on the UNESCO World Heritage List�. Was supposed to be the first opening, now planned for 2016: http://en.ahnluh.com/destinations/du..._overview.html

- Ahn Luh Yanming Lake. Another lake resort, nearby Zhengzhou City. Another one scheduled for a 2016 opening: http://en.ahnluh.com/destinations/ya..._overview.html

- Ahn Luh Xunliao Bay. An ocean resort with villas, also not too far from Hangzhou: http://en.ahnluh.com/destinations/xu..._overview.html. 2017 opening.

- Ahn Luh Yichun in the Heilongjiang province, somewhere in between Hong Kong and Shanghai, where the world�s largest Korean pine primeval forest is situated, opening 2018 indeed: http://en.ahnluh.com/destinations/yi..._overview.html

deer

More Ahn Luh Details here (found by uggboy):

http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/20...as_in_Shanghai

vuittonsofstyle

I suspect that Adrian Zecha, having decamped from Aman into the next door Singapore offices of GHM is a little bored and is therefore involving himself in GHM and Ahn Luh rather more. This would account for the sudden increase in Ahn Luh quality.