He stresses that as a general manager, he is out and about the hotel to ensure his employees are happy. Casson gives an example: “Yesterday I came in at 6am in the morning to meet with the night staff because they’re often a forgotten team. We have 30% of our guests check in between 11pm and 7am. If you think of the focus most hoteliers put on the day-time, how it looks, and a third of your guests are coming in the night! So I wanted to make sure that that team felt looked after and had what they needed to do their job, and spend some fun time with them.”
FEEDBACK
Listening to what guests have to say is an important part of the service story. Casson recounts a few guests saying they needed a beach shower on both ends rather than one — this was implemented. Diners asked for French fries and burgers at Shai Salon, which initially didn’t serve these items —this was introduced.
But one of the biggest projects undertaken by the hotel due to guest feedback was the beach. Casson reveals: “What’s more important for the Russians is the beach of a hotel. We’re on a natural part of Jumeirah beach and I was quite proud of that. But what our Russian guests told us is that it needed more manicuring.”
The shells on the beachfront were not appreciated by the guests, who made this known via feedback to the hotel. So, Casson says, the hotel implemented a million dollar beach project over seven days in the summer of 2015.
In league with the Dubai Municipality, Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach sieved 55,000 tonnes of sand from the now closed Jumeirah Beach Park, and transferred the sand to its beachfront.
“What I’m now able to tell my guests is that this is Jumeirah beach sand. I went out to where the trucks were loading it, driving around, and tipping it onto our beach,” adds Casson.
At the same time, in consultation with a marine company, the team carried out dredging, and added a marine jellyfish net so that the entire swimming experience here is guaranteed to be safe.
YEAR IN REVIEW
The hotel’s focus on service has seen it stay steady in a difficult market. While Casson declines to share exact figures, he says in terms of volume and occupancy, the hotel was ahead of its budget expectations. “We were around the 70% occupancy mark. For average rate — and this is where the market has been more challenged — we have been able to hold up pretty well. We’ve been around US $800 on an annualised basis.”
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