An address with a difference

Hotelier Middle East checks out the hotly anticipated new hotel on the block, The Address, Down Town Burj Dubai, where hotel manager Cora De Conceicao-Stuart, executive assistant manager - F&B Serge Cuypers and director of catering and conference services Alma Au Yeung explain what the hype is really all about.

Hotel Manager

Cora De Conceicao-Stuart joined the hotel a year ago, bringing valuable experience of launching a brand.

 

"Before this I was director of sales and marketing for Bvlgari Bali, which I opened and launched, which was a great experience," she says.

"The reason I was attracted to the Address project was not so much because it was an opening, but because it was the chance to launch a totally new brand - a new identity. That had in some ways been the case with Bvlgari, but for The Address I was starting up a whole new brand that no one knew and that made it very exciting."

De Conceicao-Stuart adds that she was even more excited by the prospect of making her first foray into operations as a hotel manager. "I've been preparing for this position for the past two years, wanting to get back into operations, so this was an opportunity that I couldn't resist," she explains.

When De Conceicao-Stuart first joined, the whole brand concept was still a blank canvas, she explains.

"The brand didn't even have a name or a real identity, so to be able to really conceptualise the whole identity and translate it into an offering to our guests was a dream," she says.

The role of hotel manager "has to be broken up into two parts: the pre-opening stage and the operational stage", says De Conceicao-Stuart.

"In the pre-opening, my job was more to do with conceptualising what The Address was about, trying to bring that to life in this hotel with small touches. Obviously we had to do a massive amount of recruiting and that was fun, because we really went for personalities," she continues. "Many of our staff may not have much experience, but they were selected for having the right attitude."

Now, in the post-opening stage, the emphasis is on delivering the brand "with integrity", De Conceicao-Stuart says. "I think the most important thing is having that integrity in delivering what you promise and my role is to ensure that happens,' she states."

De Conceicao-Stuart believes the main draw of the new brand is the name. "‘The Address' is a very bold statement, but it's not arrogant; it suggests a certain draw," she explains.

"I'm quite surprised at how fast the name has spread, simply by word-of-mouth," she adds. "It will take time for the name to properly travel, but I think so far it's done pretty well."

It is the brand's determination to offer something different that will cement its status among top hotels in the world, according to De Conceicao-Stuart.

"One of the areas where a lot of hotels make mistakes is that they try to be too cookie-cutter and restricted in what they say and do," she states. "So we want to not to be so scripted about how we approach everything.

"We want to stay true to that philosophy; you can't change a building every five years, but by being ready to adapt and meet any demand with top quality service - that will keep the offering current."
 

Executive Assistant Manager - F&B

Serge Cuypers joined the team six months ago, coming over from Asia where he had worked in a variety of roles for the past 12 years.

"It was the opening of a new company that attracted me - the challenge the role presented and the opportunity to really make my mark on this new brand," he explains.

 

The hotel boasts 10 outlets, including banqueting and in-room dining.

Cuypers elaborates: "We have a Chinese restaurant called Hukama; we have a three-meal restaurant called Fazaris, offering international cuisine, which has some live cooking stations; then we have a Latin-flavoured bar and lounge; we have a sky lounge, Neos, on the 63rd floor; we have a coffee shop concept called Xpresso and also a pool bar called Zeta; we have an outdoor lounge called Bajjah located on the 14th floor, with a beautiful terrace overlooking the Burj Dubai - there's an option for everyone and for any mood".

The main challenge of any new operation, says Cuypers, is finding the right people with the right skills.

Following on from De Conceicao-Stuart, he explains that staff were recruited "on the basis of their attitude and talent, as opposed to their previous experience in the industry".

Cuypers admits this may mean a few preliminary teething problems, but believes it will pay off in the long term.

"We've done a good solid month of training with the team members prior to the opening and I think we've built a strong base," he adds. "Of course, as with any hotel opening, there will be some issues - that's normal. But we've done a lot of training and we're building their confidence and continuing on-the-job training right now, so it's all looking very positive.

"If you have someone working at a hotel who is bored of their job or doesn't like it any more, the guests will pick up on that," Cuypers points out. "But we have real enthusiasm from our staff - they're enjoying their roles. It all has a very positive effect on the operation."

Cuypers says the aspect of the job he most enjoys is the variety of experiences it offers.

"One day you deal with with projects, another day you deal with customers, yet another you're dealing with associates - it's so varied," he explains. "Plus you get a fair amount of creativity in there, whether it's coming up with new cocktails, menus, flowers, entertainment or whatever.

"All the excitement of the opening and being able to deal with these different aspects of the role has been great fun."

His ambitions for the new outlets are simply that they stand the test of time, says Cuypers. "Whenever anyone sets an operation in place, he wants his outlets to last. You don't want to be a fad," he notes.

"I want to make sure these outlets are standing in another four to five years and that they're still popular and enjoyed by guests and locals alike."
 

Director of Catering And Conference Services

Alma Au Yeung was one of the first employees on board, joining the company in August 2007.

"I was hired in my specific role, but at that moment in time I was helping out with various different things such as recruiting, setting up the rooms, organising the F&B glassware - all sorts," she says.

 

"And of course for catering and conferences we have a lot of extras that needed to be sorted as well, such as tables, chairs, linen and decorative pieces, internet facilities, LCD projectors and other equipment. So that took a lot of time to finalise."

The Address offers a wide variety of meetings and events venues, including both indoor and outdoor space. "We have one grand ballroom, a junior ballroom, four boardrooms and numerous outdoor facilities, which allow us to use different settings and different reception areas depending on the client's needs," she explains.

Au Yeung says the property is aiming to attract high-end events business such as corporate functions, gala dinners and all types of social functions.

"Basically we're the ideal venue for someone who wants a unique experience with tailor-made service, from the cuisine to the mood," she says.

The Address is promoting its facilities through various different channels, continues Au Yeung.

"We have our sales team out on the road going to see clients; advertising going on both locally and internationally; and we're promoting business and leisure packages," she adds.

But the key appeal of holding an event an The Address is the broad range of options, explains Au Yeung.

"For the time being we just have The Address, Downtown Burj Dubai and The Palace under the Address brand, but we have very useful synergies between the two properties, and we'll have even more ties once our other hotels open," she says.

"Basically we're able to offer customers the best of both worlds. Say a leisure group comes to Dubai and decides to stay with us, we can then offer them activity programmes from Emaar's other properties, so for example going to play polo at the Dubai Polo and Equestrian Club.

"And more specifically looking at the other Address hotels, we will help guests if they want to ‘mix and match' facilities, so by choosing The Address you really can have everything. It's really the ideal incentives package set-up," she asserts.

The property's unique appeal, continues Au Yeung, stems from its "very professional approach".

"Putting together events is a team effort; it comes down to creating a journey, a whole customer-made experience package - with an end result that is exactly what the customer wants," she emphasises.