Hats off to Ascott

Ascot — the name conjures picture-perfect images of ladies of leisure in their dainty dresses and frilly hats, and of gents in gray silk coats with matching wide cravats and striped gray trousers watching thoroughbred horses race on a racecourse in Berkshire, England.

And speaking of thoroughbreds, one has galloped into town: Ascott The Residence Makati. What used to be Oakwood Premier is now Ascott, but except for the fact that the two are both strong brands, they’re entirely different.

“Oakwood is a strong brand out of the US. If you go to the US, there are a lot of Oakwoods,” says Ascott country general manager Arthur Gindap, seasoned Filipino hotelier who’s behind the Philippine portfolio of The Ascott Group, which includes four properties all located in the Central Business District of Makati with a total of 728 serviced residences. “On the other hand, Ascott has no presence in the US, but it’s the largest serviced residence outside the US — in the Asia Pacific, China, and the Middle East. And it’s got three brands: the 5-star Ascott, 4-1/2-star Somerset, and Citadines.”

When it entered Makati, Ascott staged a coup of sorts. You will remember that in 2003, Oakwood was the scene of a mutiny mounted by Magdalo rebels headed by Navy Lt. Antonio Trillanes IV (who had since hopped to another hotel, also in the Makati area). Ascott’s coup was probably more earthshaking.

“The takeover/changeover happened overnight, ” relates Arthur. “We entered Oakwood on the midnight of March 21, and started to convert right away from Oakwood to Ascott. So when the guests went to bed on the 21st, it was Oakwood; when they woke up the next morning, it was Ascott. Of course, a couple of weeks before that, the signage on the facade of hotel had been changed. But that early morning of the 22nd was the first time we lit up the Ascott sign. People were just amazed that every single thing in their room was changed from Oakwood to Ascott. We had to do that because when we purchased this business, we did so under the Ascott Real Estate Investment Trust, which is a listed company in Singapore. As part of the Ascott, it buys properties that are ongoing ones, meaning we don’t have to close them down. So, we have to specifically look for properties that are built as a serviced residence. And if we buy it, we plan the changeover on a one-night basis; we do it overnight.”

The change did not stop there. Ascott brought in its “heartware” or service from the heart. Guests call it Ascott’s “wow” factor. They’re simply wowed that they come, stay, and come back.

If you were an Oakwood regular, you will probably spot not a few familiar faces at Ascott. “Yes, we kept all the employees,” Gindap is happy to announce. “We told them, ‘You have nothing to worry about. We are great employers...‘ And we not only took them but also recognized their tenure. Not many people will buy a business and keep everybody — and keep the tenure, not let employees start from zero. Human resources are very important to us. Every single person — from the managers down to our associates and housekeeping —  they’ve all been retained.”

With the strength of the Ascott brand, people started coming to Manila and book in an Ascott. Gindap notes, “All these years, we haven’t had an Ascott; we have the three Somerset properties — Somerset in Legaspi Village, which has 138 serviced residences; Salcedo, 150; Olympia, 134. Typically, they’re smaller, but these properties have all the facilities of a hotel, only on a smaller scale — the gym is smaller, the pool is smaller. But the people who stay at Ascott may not necessarily stay at Somerset. Let’s say in a company, if there’s a CEO, the CEO will stay in an Ascott. The VP will stay in a Somerset and maybe the department head will stay in the Citadines. That’s the leveling that we have.”

Ascott has a total of 306 serviced residences. “A serviced residence is simply a hotel that has been designed for a long-staying guest,” Gindap describes.  “So every room has a kitchen. If you come here, perhaps on a project for one month, would you much rather stay in a hotel room that’s 35 square meters or in a one-bed room or even a studio with a kitchen where you can cook?”

That you can cook in your apartment accounted for the burning success of this property.  Or, as in the case of Ascott Makati, you can always go down to Glorietta and choose from the dozens of restaurants there. But surely, you wouldn’t want to miss the delicious buffet breakfast at The Ascott Dining Room that’s available for only P775++, 6 to 10:30 a.m. on weekdays and 6 to 11 a.m. on weekends.

But while enjoying your morning bagel and juice at Ascott, how sure are you that a misguided battalion of soldiers will not suddenly barge into the place?

“All our entry/exit points are manned,” assures Gindap. “Even when one orders food delivery, the delivery boy must be escorted to the residence or unit.”

Certainly, this holiday season and all through the year, all is calm, all is bright at Ascott. Fact is, when you go to the mall, it’s noisy, but when you come up to the Ascott residence, the lobby is so quiet.

“During the explosion in Glorietta, we increased security for a certain period of time as a precautionary measure even after the news came out that it wasn’t a bomb,” Gindap tells us. “We want to ensure maximum security and comfort for guests who stay here.”

And then there are the Ascott bears that never fail to provide warmth, comfort, and tender loving care. Gindap loves to repeat the story of a Filipino expat family who was on their way to Thailand when the wife and two small children were caught in the Glorietta explosion. The Ascott staff not only visited the family in the hospital but also stayed with them until they were discharged. And the two kids found much solace in their Ascott bears that they wouldn’t go to bed without their bears. A bear-y touching story indeed!

So, what’s brewing at Ascott?

“Starting January next year, there will be a complete makeover of all the rooms,” replies Gindap. “Flat-screen TVs will be introduced in all the rooms. The public areas — the restaurants — will be freshened up. But we’re not closing the place. We plan to take out two or three floors at a time, renovate them, and put them back.”

The Ascott Group is not new in the Philippines. Its Somerset started operating in the country in 2000.

“We’ve been in the Philippines even when the times were tough,” asserts Gindap. “The year 2000 was  tough for the group. But we’ve always felt that the Philippines had a lot of potential, so today, we’re the largest serviced residence operator in the  Philippines internationally. Our two competitors are Oakwood, which we bought, and Fraser Place in Salcedo Village. If you look at the total number of units available, we have 85 percent of the market share.”

Is the serviced apartment or residence going to be the trend in the hotel industry?

“Yes,” comes Gindap’s quick reply,  “because when families travel together, they don’t have to worry about two different rooms in a hotel. People like to combine business with pleasure and often, businessmen travel with their families. In a serviced residence, you’re liberated, you’re not confined. You can cook in your room; you have your own kitchen.”

More, Gindap notes an interesting travel phenomenon: Women no longer just lunch, they also travel together — friends or the whole barkada — and they stay in a serviced residence with two or three bedrooms.

There are three words to sum up the advantages of serviced apartments over hotels: space, privacy, and exclusivity. Adds Gindap, “And since our guests are longer staying, we are also generally very close to them. We do a number of activities like our Ascott host program. Staff members are designated as Ascott hosts and their job is to take very good care of our guests. It’s not a butler service. When you first come in and you’re going to be assigned in the Philippines for a couple of months, we’ll give you an orientation program or a city tour with other new guests who will be here for sometime. We’ll bring them around Manila just to get them acclimatized to Manila and the places around it. Included here is a security briefing where our security manager will brief guests on do’s and don’ts when they’re out of the hotel as a precaution. Then there’s the Ascott Explorer or Somerset Explorer — this month, we’ll go white water rafting in Pagsanjan.Every quarter, we have a resident’s activity, like a party. These are heartware activities that set Ascott apart from the hotels.”

Add to all that the distinct Filipino touch at Ascott.

Gindap points out, “We espouse what we call LIFE — L is for local touch, I is  for individuality, F means freedom to breathe — our service is never overbearing, we give our residents the freedom to tell us what their likes and dislikes are, and we will tailor a program for them. Our home organization is Filipino, starting with me. The manager of this property is a foreigner, but all our managers are Filipinos.”

And to ensure unparalleled service, Ascott management has put up a transparent box, where guests can drop their feedback/comments. “It’s a see-through box with a lock,” says Gindap. “The reason is that if the feedback is not positive, the questionnaire will not disappear. We’re very transparent. We get a lot of positive feedback and the departments share comments to further improve service. For me, the true report card is the guests’ feedback. And at Ascott, guests’ expectations are very high because Ascott is a premium brand.”

Now you know what makes a thoroughbred as far as the hotel/hospitality industry is concerned.  Hats off to Ascott!