Tourism | Sheraton’s fast-tracked growth in Asia Pacific

Vincent Ong

The Sheraton Hotels & Resorts is expected to announce accelerated growth plans for the Asia Pacific region today, based on its ten-point plan designated “Sheraton 2020,” which was announced in June last year. The plan is designed to “put Sheraton Hotels & Resorts firmly back into the global spotlight,” according to the company.
As Vincent Ong, Senior Director – Brand Management of the Starwood Hotels & Resorts Asia Pacific, said during a presentation in Macau on Friday that was attended by the Times, “The bigger word is ‘personalization’; it is all about promoting your own style.”
Following the recent upgraded designation of Sheraton Macau to Sheraton Grand Macau, a title that Ong explains aims to classify the “best of the best,” the new class of hotels plans to “meet and match the expectations of our guests, showcasing Sheraton’s best properties,” he said, adding that “[guest] expectations are changing.”
Sheraton Macau was one of the first to be awarded with the title, and is one of more than a hundred premier hotels that the brand expects to elevate to “Grand” status by 2020. Currently there are 23 hotels with that status, 16 of which are located in the Asia Pacific region. Those figures include the three properties that from today join the “Grand” tier: Sheraton Grand Shanghai Pudong, Sheraton Grand Guangzhou Huadu and Sheraton Grand Jakarta Gandaria City.
“As we complete the first year of our Sheraton 2020 [plan], initiatives are already underway to establish Sheraton as the hotel brand of choice everywhere,” said Ong, before adding, “We are making tremendous progress in Asia Pacific, continuing to provide guests with effortless travel experiences, so they can experience more. That is our brand position.”