Deepak Ohri, founder and former CEO of Lebua Hotels & Resorts, has launched Luxury Atelier Maison Happiness (LAMH), a consulting and management company focused on enhancing the financial performance of luxury hotels and other hospitality properties by optimising revenue per available room (RevPAR).
Ohri, known for transforming Lebua Hotels into iconic destinations – such as bringing the Hangover team to shoot at its Bangkok sky bar – emphasises creating unique, memorable experiences over fleeting opulence.
“I believe in creating timeless experiences,” he said, adding that “while wealth can be surpassed, cherished experiences are lasting”.
This philosophy led to his success with events like the Million Baht Dinner hosted at Bangkok’s Lebua hotel in 2007, a US$30,000 – equivalent to US$44,000 today – per person 10-course feast that quickly went viral for its exclusivity and luxury.
Based in the US and Thailand, LAMH aims to bring Ohri’s expertise to a broader market.
“During Covid, luxury brands raised prices by 91 per cent, which indicated to me a gap in the market for sustainable, well-priced luxury,” he explained.
LAMH’s approach involves leveraging untapped revenue potential to enhance profitability through strategic pricing, compelling guest experiences and enhancing food and beverage offerings.
One of the strategies includes leveraging every hotel space to generate revenue without compromising guest comfort, integrating the hotel’s narrative into every element.
He noted: “A restaurant should blend seamlessly with the hotel’s architecture and story. It should create a cohesive, comfortable environment for guests.”
The firm also assists luxury hotels to launch new culinary concepts and experiences with custom designs using a strategy built around customer feedback, data analysis, and strategic actions to address issues that inhibit business growth for hotels.
Other innovative ideas include using under-utilised spaces, such as displaying and selling art or watches in corridors. This creative thinking extends to collaborations with high-profile partners and strategic marketing alliances.
To evaluate areas of potential, LAMH has partnered with Shiji’s integrated hospitality solutions, including property management software, point of sale, and guest intelligence platforms, for data analysis.
He joins Centara following his most recent role as vice president – global sales & The Americas with Kempinski Hotels. His wealth of industry experience brings fresh impetus and innovation to Centara’s global commercial efforts.
During his career, he has worked for IHG, Anantara, Le Meridien, and Story Hospitality.
Kondo previously served as the general manager of W Osaka, and has also chaired the Marriott Business Council for Japan and Guam.
Knuepfer joins SHG from Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, where he served as area vice president and general manager.
The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) has launched its Let’s Go the Extra Mile campaign to encourage hospitality frontline staff and the general public that they can do more to demonstrate good hospitality.
A trade preview was held to share updates on the hospitality campaign, which was attended by about 120 trade representatives from tourism-related sectors – tourism, aviation, transportation, hotels, F&B, retail, attractions and MICE.
Moreover, different sectors in the city will also launch various activities to create synergy, and work together to enhance Hong Kong’s reputation as a hospitable destination.
ATI Travel managing director Richard Woss said: “Hong Kong, unfortunately, is not exactly known as the City of Smiles – it is good to remind everyone in the industry to be proactively friendly and welcoming.”
Woss stated that the onus is on those in the hospitality sector to discover how they can improve on this, adding that his company frontline staff “love their jobs and are positive thinkers”.
Paul Leung, managing director of Holiday World Tours, cited that it is vital to figure out why people are not polite. He said: “Manpower crunch keeps frontline staff very busy so this root cause must be addressed. We should explore more alternative ways, like job satisfaction to incentivise staff, in addition to monetary rewards.”
He added that hiring foreign workers for hotel positions or even as coach drivers would be an efficient way to resolve this labour problem.
“Many industries suffer manpower shortage with staff overloaded with work,” he opined.
However, Liberty International Tourism (HK) CEO Portia Hau commented: “It is not fair to say all service frontlines are not friendly or not smiling. So far, local guides and retail shops demonstrate good hospitality. Some waiters at cha chaan teng (teahouses) are rude, but it’s not only to tourists but locals as well.
“We handle mostly foreign visitors, and don’t have bad feedback (regarding) our hospitality,” she noted, remarking that HKTB or the government should consider carefully before implementing such campaigns.