Page 25 - RLI September 2019

THE LANGHAM
Sydney, Australia
Classic,

Timeless,

Passionate he hospitality arm of Great Eagle Holdings, one Langham to remember. They go to these properties for Hong Kong
CORDIS

of Hong Kong’s leading property development
companies that was founded in 1963, Langham special occasions, whether they are big or small.
“The Langham hotels are indelibly linked in all our
T Hospitality Group enjoys a legendary heritage guests’ memories to the most joyful of their celebrations
that dates back to 1865, when The Langham, London such as weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, graduations,
originally opened as Europe’s first ‘Grand Hotel’. births, promotions and engagements. We are there for the
As the flagship brand of Langham Hospitality Group, The romances, the nightcaps and the laughter,” says Leser.
Langham Hotels and Resorts represent the epitome of Despite its first hotel being more than 150 years old, The
luxury with a portfolio of luxury hotels in prime destinations. Langham is still a relatively young brand as they only really began
Committed to delivering exceptional experiences, each of the to grow in 2004. Leser believes that the essence of The Langham
hotels are defined by sophisticated and gracious hospitality and the consistency of service is what distinguish them from the
reflecting elegance in design, innovation in hospitality, sincere crowded hotel sector. He goes onto say that the backbone of
service and captivation of the senses across all its properties. The Langham has and always will be the personalised service,
Langham Hospitality Group also operates Cordis Hotels where the needs of its guests are put above all else.
and Resorts, an upscale hotel brand whose holistic concept So what does Leser consider to be the key drivers behind the
focuses on the core pillars of intuitive service, sophistication company’s success to date?
and a sense of community in the best locations in the world. “Our people are our “The Langham hotels are
The Group currently operates 24 properties under The greatest asset. Our colleagues
Langham and Cordis brands. The Langham brand represents are the key drivers behind indelibly linked in all our
16 hotels spread throughout four continents; currently they the company’s success to guests’ memories to the most
are in Boston, Chicago, New York and Los Angeles in the US, date. Our strategy calls for us
London in the UK, Munich in Germany, Shanghai, Shenzhen, to remain focused and not joyful of their celebrations”
Guangzhou, Xiamen, Ningbo, Haining, Hefei and Haikou in scale up just to increase our
China, Sydney and Melbourne in Australia and Hong Kong. footprint. It is more important to focus on quality before quantity.”
Over the next five years the company plans to open six Moving forward the company is putting a big focus on
to eight hotels under The Langham banner and eight to ten e-commerce and online retailing on social media channels.
under the Cordis banner. In addition to Instagram, Twitter and Facebook, in China,
Soon to open is The Langham hotel in Jakarta, which is due WeChat is an important and key platform for online retail
next year, and The Langham Nymphenburg Residence in Munich which Langham Hospitality Group has invested in and
which opens in the final quarter of this year. As for Cordis, locations focused on this in the last 12 months, setting up a structure
will open in Hangzhou and Shanghai in the next 12 months. to support content, engagement and online retail.
“Our goal is to have The Langham hotels in key capital and Leser feels that the ethos of The Langham properties is
gateway cities around the world, but we are very measured that they are classic and timeless with a British heritage that
and we focus on the pace of our growth,” explains Stefan
is passionate about service, whilst Cordis is genuine, friendly
THE LANGHAM Chicago, US Leser, CEO of Langham Hospitality Group. “The key priority and family inclusive, locally connected at the heart of the
is to be in the best location in these cities and as we will not
communities in which they are situated.
“In the future, we will be focusing on increasing brand
compromise on this detail, we’d rather take our time than
lend our brand name at a subpar location.” awareness and rolling out our new global campaign,” explains
To help keep the properties attractive and exciting, the Leser. “Finally as CEO of Langham Hospitality Group, I am
Group has been asking its guests over the past year what very honoured to have the opportunity to make people
they really want from their luxury hotel experience. What happy which gives me a lot of energy and positive influence
they have learned from this is that guests come to The over people’s lives, be they clients, guests or colleagues.”

THE LANGHAM
London, UK

Langham Hospitality Group is a global hotel company that operates
24 properties under The Langham and Cordis brands. Here, RLI speaks to

Stefan Leser, CEO of Langham Hospitality Group about the company and
what the future has in store.

CORDIS
24 RETAIL & LEISURE INTERNATIONAL SEPTEMBER 2019 Dongqian Lake, Ningbo, China