By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo / Special to the BusinessMirror
AFTER the initial success of its first hotel in the Philippines and Asia, Nobu Hospitality, owner and operator of Nobu hotels and restaurants, is considering to establish a resort south of Manila.
The hospitality group—co-founded by award-winning Hollywood actor Robert de Niro, Chef Nobu Matsuhisa, and film producer Meir Teper —also expects Nobu Manila to contribute significantly to its bottom line in the years to come. The hotel, at the 6.2-hectare City of Dreams complex in Parañaque City, was formally launched in a simple ribbon-cutting ceremony on Monday, with taiko drummers playing on both sides of the hotel entrance.
In an interview with select members of the media, de Niro said: “There should be other locations in the Philippines, and this is the first Nobu Hotel. But, I am beginning to think that, maybe, one would be good, a resort, a Nobu Resort, with a beach [along the lines of Amanpulo]. If we found real estate, the right place and partners in the future, yes [we’d consider a new location in the Philippines]…. I would love to do a Nobu Resort here.” De Niro is a frequent visitor to Amanpulo, a high-end luxury resort in Palawan.
Trevor Horwell, chief executive of Nobu Hospitality, added: “We’re looking at possible locations in the southern market [like Cebu and Palawan]. If there’s a demand for a luxury hotel and restaurant [then we will consider it].
He said Nobu Hotel is “doing very well” since it opened, hitting an average occupancy “in excess of 80 percent. So we’re pleased with the business coming into the hotel. We think it will make a significant contribution to our bottom line.”
Sources in the hotel revealed that the bulk of the hotel’s guests are locals checking in for “staycations” as well as visiting balikbayan (overseas Filipinos working or living abroad), who like the property’s strategic location, being near the international airport, malls and other points of interest.
Horwell is unfazed with the decrease in Chinese tourists in the Philippines, which the City of Dreams Manila—an integrated casino resort complex—has been targetting as they are big gamers. “I understand there’s a compression of the gaming market, which has affected Macau and the other gaming destinations in Asia, but, I think, this is cyclical.”
He stressed that Nobu Hotel continues to market itself to the mainland Chinese. “I think it’s a good development for the Philippines that the Macau gaming market has dropped because it means there’s another gaming destination that the Chinese can go to.”
Due to the crackdown on corruption by the Beijing government, as well as its current political and territorial differences with the Aquino administration, Chinese visitor arrivals in the Philippines have been dipping since late last year. In the first quarter of 2015, Chinese arrivals in the Philippines plunged by 32 percent.
Horwell said the decision to open a Nobu Hotel in the Philippines was “more relationship-driven,” as the company has previously worked with Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. co-chaired by Macau and Australia casino moguls Larence Ho and James Packer. “When we found out they were putting up a City of Dreams in Manila, we were excited. We want to work with pioneers, and James and Lawrence certainly are visionaries and pioneers in their field,” the Nobu Hospitality chief executive disclosed.
Asked what kind of entertainment would Nobu offer its guests, Horwell told a media briefing earlier that, “One of the reasons we created Nobu Hotel is that we wanted a seamless experience. So we looked at the market here…it’s part of a fully integrated resort. We wanted to be part of a world-class destination. We become part of a great destination, we offer great rooms and our success is because of our service. With Filipinos working for us, we can ensure the same level of service that has been delivered worldwide.”
He said that about 11 more hotels will be opened by Nobu Hospitality in the next two years with locations in Miami Beach, Malibu, Riyadh, London, Chicago, Cabo San Lucas, among others. In an interview in 2014, de Niro also cited Singapore and Macau as possible locations of Nobu hotels.
For his part, Clarence Chung, chairman of Melco Crown Philippines Resorts Corp., a unit of Melco Crown Entertainment, said, “Internationally acclaimed, innovative world-class hospitality is a core component of City of Dreams. I am thrilled that our collaboration with Chef Nobu Matsuhisa and Nobu Hospitality partners Robert de Niro and Meir Teper, together with the entire Nobu Hospitality executive team, has resulted in the creation of this inspiring and stunning destination hotel.
“We are convinced that the development of highly exclusive, luxury lifestyle offerings is a key driver in inspiring growing numbers of the region’s luxury-leisure destination seekers to visit Manila and the Philippines. They rightly demand the very best in lifestyle offerings and Nobu Hotel Manila certainly ranks among the very best of the best.”
Nobu Hotel in Manila is a 321-room property designed with a modern Japanese aesthetic, which, its owners say, will deliver a “thrilling, celebrity-inspired and fun luxury experience.” Its main dining outlet, Nobu Restaurant, serves Japanese-inspired cuisine with a modern take created by acclaimed Japanese Chef Nobu Matsuhisa.