Northstar

Interview Managing 2 hotel brands As managing director of two hotels, Aiden McAuley reports to both the corporate offi ces of the respective brands based in Zurich (Swissotel) and Toronto (Fairmont). As someone who has been in Singapore for many years, can you give me a perspective of how successful has the MICE industry in Singapore? Mr Aiden McAuley Singapore has built for itself an excellent reputation for being one of the top MICE destinations in the world, renowned for its world-class standards in terms of infrastructure, accessibility, connectivity and reliability. And this is only affi rmed by the numerous awards and accolades the country has been lauded with over the years. While there are other countries that may have close or similar capabilities, Singapore has maintained its forefrontal position with its consistency and steadiness in growing and developing the MICE industry at a very encouraging pace over the years. What do you attribute Singapore's success to? The success can be attributed to Singapore's ability to continue adding on to the overall offer to leisure and incentive markets, from the development of the Integrated Resorts, Singapore Flyer to the hosting of prime events such as the F1 Singapore Grand Prix and new projects like Gardens by the Bay, River Safari at the Singapore Zoo and the International Cruise Terminal. I see Singapore truly becoming a global destination in its own right. Singapore is also the hub which houses some of the key corporate brand names of various knowledge- driven industries such as the fi nance, biomedical and information technology industries, which makes the country an ideal venue of choice for MICE events. Where are your main markets? Our international brand Personality Mr Aiden McAuley Managing Director Fairmont Singapore & Swissôtel The Stamford recognition and global sales network gives us the ability to attract and secure signifi cant size international incentive groups; in particular note from emerging markets like India. Other markets that continue to perform well for us include what we call "Nearby Asia" like China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand and Indonesia. What edge do you have over others in the market? With its strategic location in the heart of Singapore, a 70,000 square feet Raffl es City Convention Centre with a versatile range of 27 fully equipped meeting rooms, a large inventory of over 2,000 guestrooms at Fairmont Singapore and Swissôtel The Stamford, 16 leading restaurants and bars, and more importantly, a dedicated and experienced team of convention specialists to meet the discerning needs of meeting planners and event organisers, RCCC continues to position itself strongly as a choice venue for MICE events. Do you expect the market to grow steadily despite gloom and doom coming out of the States? I tend to agree with the view that Asia Pacifi c continues to be able to separate itself from some of the fi nancial turmoil of the Eurozone and North America. As we continue to witness year-on-year growth in Asia Pacifi c and our intra-Asia buying patterns, we will continue to do well. The addition of the two integrated resorts have also created tremendous buzz and elevated Singapore's status as a vibrant MICE destination. This has attracted more BTMICE visitors and events and enlarged the pie for all players in the market, which actually leads to a positive impact for us as well. How many prestigious functions have you hosted in the past years? We have hosted several high profi le and global scale events over the past years, including the 117th International Olympic Committee (IOC) Session in July 2005, a week- long event which saw over 6,500 offi cials, delegates, dignitaries and sports celebrities congregating to witness London's win as the host country for the 2012 Olympic Games. Both Fairmont Singapore and Swissôtel The Stamford also served as the corporate base for several Formula One sponsors and offi cials, with RCCC being one of the largest caterers for the corporate hospitality suites since the inaugural F1 Singapore Grand Prix in 2008. From 14 - 26 August 2010, as Offi cial Hotel Partner of the Youth Olympic Games, we hosted overseas guests from the Olympic family, International Federations, commercial partners, government offi cials and representatives from the media. What would have been the most memorable event ever held in your hotel(s)? One of the most memorable events ever hosted was the Asian Youth Games (AYG) 2010. Swissôtel The Stamford was appointed the offi cial AYG village. During the week-long Games, from 29 June – 7 July, the hotel hosted over 1,300 professional youth athletes from all over the world. In addition, three restaurants dished out 50,000 meals throughout the Games and special cultural and education booths were set up at RCCC for teens to visit during their free time. Swissotel The Stamford and Fairmont are probably the 3rd largest producer (for hotels) of MICE events apart from Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World. Thank you for this general accolade and for considering our hotels as "Probably the 3rd Largest producer of MICE Events" in Singapore. We are proud of this point and yes, we hold numerous MICE events, that drive signifi cant revenues to our Hotels and the RCCC. We attribute this success to our commitment service excellence and by remaining competitive with our competitors in Singapore offering value for money.respective brands based in Zurich (Swissotel) and Toronto (Fairmont). Inbound agents complain of too high room rates because of the emphasis on high yield market,hence affecting room rates for leisure travelers - what is your take on this? As the market heads towards returning to pre-2008 levels of business and pricing, industry trends dictate that all prices will rise in line with increase in cost of goods, labor, infrastructure and other key factors. We believe that our pricing remains very competitive in the market and that the increase in prices are driven naturally within supply and demand of the overall hospitality industry in Singapore. Events 5 January 2012

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