In today’s world of performance-based marketing, where everything is measured by clicks and conversions, it is almost sentimental to see a hotel company invest in something as intangible as “entertainment” and “magic”.
But this is what Accor Asia Pacific has been doing for well over a decade at ITB Berlin where each year, it hosts a select group of customers to a dinner at the Sofitel and lays on a surprise performance which has ranged from illusionist James More, winner of Britain’s Got Talent, the New York cast of Jersey Boys, and Thai Opera singers from Accor’s Medici restaurant, at Hotel Muse in Bangkok.
Each year has the 80-or-so guests guessing what the performance will be, wondering what rabbit Graham Wilson, chief marketing and distribution officer, Accor Asia Pacific, will pull out from his hat.
Well, this year, he trumped it by assembling 18 former cast members of Les Miserables who put on a 20-minute performance which left guests spellbound and moved by the voices on stage.
It is no doubt a big investment but for Wilson (pictured below), it is about thanking its customers and taking the time to remind people what hospitality is really all about – looking after customers and giving them an unforgettable experience. “This is our way to thank our most important clients and to give them a taste of Accor’s world-class hospitality. Every year we like to bring a touch of magic to ITB and with so many events being held during the event we want ours to stand out as a truly memorable highlight of the ITB calendar.”
For the guests gathered each year, it has become their highlight of ITB Berlin and a reunion of sorts, and of course, a reminder of how big Accor has become in Asia Pacific. It has in its pipeline 256 hotels opening in the region, equal to one hotel a week, and it will create 10,000 jobs per year in Asia/Pacific for the next three years. (Globally, Accor is opening a hotel every two days.)
Upcoming openings for this year include the launch of its first Sebel in China, the relaunch of Singapore Resort & Spa Sentosa as a Sofitel by mid-year and the launch of Sofitel Wellington in New Zealand. It is also relaunching the Pullman brand in Hong Kong with the rebrand of The Park Lane Hotel.
Said Ray Stone, vice president of marketing of Voyager Hotels & Resorts, Australia, a regular guest, “The Accor evening at ITB is one of those occasions in hospitality which are so memorable that not only do you feel truly privileged to be invited but in many cases the invitation can actually influence your decision as to which days you attend the trade show. Just ask any of the attendees that evening.
“The quality of the dinner, the service and the elegant setting are complemented or even exceeded only by the extraordinary shows which Accor, in the person of Graham Wilson, manages to pull out of the hat every year. This year it was Les Miserables – amazing. It’s the kind of evening that creates the basis of meaningful relationships, something that we hear and read a lot about in today’s world of hospitality but rarely actually see achieved.”
Said Morris Sim, CEO and co-founder of Circos Brand Karma, a first-time guest, “Together with the cast of Les Miserables, Accor created magic. In doing so, Accor showed that beyond the functional aspects of hospitality, its leaders are very much heart and soul.”
For me, the event is a reminder that whatever company we’re working with – Expedia, Booking, Orbitz, GTA or AOT Travel Australia, among the guests – we’re all human beings, moved by similar things – sentimentality, love and music and, did I mention, star fever because right after the dinner, everyone flocked to have photographs taken with the stars, including Wilson himself, who leapt into their arms.
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