GM Interview: Anantara's Jean Francois Laurent

Anantara Dubai The Palm Resort & Spa GM Jean-Francois Laurent reveals how the hotel is making a difference on Palm Jumeirah, in particular when it comes to the luxury resort’s conservation efforts

Following in the successful footsteps of three Abu Dhabi properties — Qasr Al Sarab Desert Resort by Anantara, Desert Islands Resort & Spa by Anantara, and Eastern Mangroves Hotel & Spa by Anantara — the Thai brand officially made its Dubai debut on Palm Jumeirah in September last year.

The property itself, however, was ready long before Anantara came into the picture. The heavily delayed hotel, owned by Seven Tides, was originally meant to be operated by Mövenpick under the Royal Amwaj brand.

But with the contract being terminated in October 2012, the unused building was sitting on the Palm Jumeirah crescent without a hotel company to manage it until Anantara signed as the operator in 2013.

“The resort was originally due to open under a four-star hospitality brand, however, as the progress of the Palm was developing mostly with high-end hotels, it made sense for the developers to work alongside a five-star hotel brand and continue with this trend.

“The Thai-inspired architecture of the resort was a major draw for the Anantara brand and after improvements were made to the interior appointing and exterior landscaping to bring it up to the standard, we opened the resort in September 2013,” explains general manager Jean-Francois Laurent.

Since opening in September, the 293-key Anantara Dubai The Palm Resort & Spa has steadily grown its presence, and at the six-month mark, occupancy stands at 90%.

“We opened and deliberately controlled our occupancy to ensure our team got used to the property and delivered the best service possible. It took us about a month to put the team together in alignment with the Anantara culture,” he explains.

The brand name also helped promote the resort, says Laurent, with Anantara being a popular choice for tourists from Asia in particular.

“Anantara is a brand that is not very well known in the Middle East, but it’s a brand that is very well known by tour operators and guests alike in Asia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Maldives. So when the property came on the market, it was not difficult for tour operators to propose it to their guests. So that kind of made our lives easy,” Laurent admits.

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The hotel’s location on Palm Jumeirah also lends to its success, as Laurent explains: “The Palm is quite unique; it’s a destination within a destination. We are surrounded by water; the view and the location are fantastic. So I think as a guest coming to Dubai, the one place you want to be is on the Palm.

“The Palm is actually quite accessible for a lot of people [even in the UAE]. It’s only 15kms from JBR and the Dubai Marina. Don’t forget the trunk and the fronds are also inhabited and a lot of guests are also coming from the proximity, especially for food & beverage and bars,” he adds.

With 239-keys offering a mix of guest rooms, suites, swimming pool villas, and Dubai’s first over-water villas, the resort offers guests a variety of choices.

The property has also added 30 one- and two-bedroom luxury apartments to its inventory, while Thai and oriental touches around the resort — from the electric tuk-tuks on arrival to the Thai-inspired architecture — drive home the Anantara brand.

The resort also includes 10,000m2 of swimming pools and lagoons spread throughout the property, with some villas offering direct access to temperature-controlled lagoons. Another quirky touch at the resort is the sight of hotel staff passing by the villas through the lagoons serving up cocktails and fresh fruit during the day.

Commenting on competing with other resorts on the Palm, Laurent says: “Our property is very unique in terms of architecture, design, and offering. We are definitely competing but I think we are offering an alternative to more traditional hotels.

Our resort is spread over the land with only one-storey buildings, compared with others that have three or four floors. So it really gives a sense of being far away and if you close your eyes you really feel like you’re in Thailand. I think everyone tries to find their own way in the market and we have tapped into the right pocket and that’s why I believe we are so successful.”

WORK IN PROGRESS
With the hotel succeeding at drawing in guests, Laurent reveals there are some facilities that were still to open during the interview with Hotelier in April. Up first was Anantara Spa, which was scheduled to open by the end of the month. The spa (which is now open) comprises 17 treatment rooms, including private beach side cabanas for massages.

“The spa has a contemporary look with a touch of Asia and we will have some unique treatments. We thought of using products from the Middle East and indigenous products. We like to keep things indigenous at Anantara and so some of the products will include dates in scrubs and sand collected from dunes in the desert,” explains Laurent.

Also due to open at the end of April was the resort’s Australian bar and grill, Bushman. “From what I have seen so far, the choice of food and spices are quite unique. And it’s great that even after so many years, after experiencing a lot of outlets in Dubai, there are still spices and ingredients I’ve never heard of,” says Laurent.

Bushman (which also opened as scheduled) adds to Anantara’s current F&B offering, which includes all-day dining restaurant Crescendo, Far-Eastern outlet Mekong, the Lotus Lounge, which overlooks the pool, and outdoor venue The Beach House.

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THE RIGHT TEAM
While the hotel’s unique features have helped attract attention, Laurent believes the staff has been vital to its success.

“We were extremely careful about recruitment. In some cases we don’t necessarily look at the professional aspect when considering a person’s CV, but very much the personality and trying to discover the hidden talent of people in order to ensure that we recruit somebody who will be really guest-focused,” he explains.

Once recruited, team members went through an orientation programme to familiarise themselves with the Anantara culture, the property, as well as the city. Apart from sharing guest feedback — whether good or bad — as part of the daily briefing, the hotel has also implemented an empowerment programme that allows staff to take a call on offering special room amenities to guests to enhance their experiences.

“We have created a programme that’s called ‘We Care’, which stands for We Create Amazing Recovery Experiences. So we take every opportunity to improve our services and the goal is for everyone to be empowered to take actions at every level without necessarily referring to their manager in order to make sure that the guest leaves with amazing memories,” explains Laurent.

The GM is also passionate about the CSR programme at Anantara Dubai The Palm. As part of conservation efforts, the resort will develop a coral farm in the sea near the property.

“What we want to achieve is to create a coral reef under the over-water villas so guests can enjoy the sea life directly from their room because the floor of the villa is made of glass.

The marine life around the Palm is very healthy. Considering that this is an artificial, man-made project, over the years the nature has started returning and there is a lot of marine wildlife near the resort. Now we see stingrays and even turtles in the lagoon so that’s quite nice and we want to develop on that side,” says Laurent.

Work on the coral farm is due to begin after the summer, and is part of Anantara’s larger conservation efforts in the communities in which it operates, such as the wildlife park on Sir Bani Yas Island, and the elephant protection programme at Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp & Resort in Thailand.

The resort is also working on implementing a recycling programme on site in order to convert organic waste into compost so it can be re-used. The property already recycles most of its waste, including paper, plastic, glass, wood, and aluminium.

“Anantara is very much focused on protecting nature so this is part of it. Obviously in Dubai, it’s a little tuned down because of the location. It’s a deserted area, so we do whatever we can to develop and protect wildlife, and every time there is an opportunity to save energy, we do it. It’s not only about saving money,” he asserts.