Banyan Tree Hotels and Resorts

[pic 1]    Banyan Tree Hotels and Resorts  [pic 2]

 Ganta Murali, LS1508233.

 Beihang University, School of Economics and Management ,Beijing.

Abstract: This study success factors for Banyan Tree hotels and Resorts.  Banyan Tree Hotels and Resorts competitive Advantages, Brand to be considered local versus global, marketing strategies adopting remain competitive. The implications are also provided for the success development of Banyan Tree hotels as well as Asian hospitality industry.

Keywords: Banyan Tree, competitive and success factors, marketing strategies.

Introduction: Banyan Tree Holdings Limited is a leading international hospitality brand that manages and Develops premium resorts, hotels and spas. From a single boutique resort in Phuket in 1994, BANYAN TREE has grown into a multi-business operator globally. The group currently consists of 30 hotels and over 60 spas retail galleries in 27 countries. As a brand of Asian origin, Banyan tree has also achieved global recognition. By the end of 2008. A brand synonymous with private villas, tropical garden spas, and retail galleries promoting traditional craft, Banyan Tree Hotels and Resorts received its first guest in 1994 in Phuket, Thailand. Since then, it had grown into a leading manager and developer of niche and premium resorts, hotels, and spas in Asia Pacific.

•  How do you think BANYAN TREE’S basis for competitive advantage?

•  How important is it for the brand to be considered local versus global?

• Propose recommendations regarding what marketing strategies BANYAN TREE   can adopt to remain competitive?

1.Competitive Advantages:

• Banyan Tree’s strong brand recognition allows it to command     prices at the high end of the market for the resorts, hotels and spas that it manages. Each of its brands and product lines targets distinct market segments, increasing its overall customer base.
• Banyan Tree’s integrated capabilities – including in-house design, project management and centralized marketing – enable it to create new product offerings, reduce the time needed to launch them, and manage costs effectively. Centralized marketing also allows it to target unaffected markets when external catastrophes affect one or more of its markets.

• It has an experienced, qualified management team whose core members have been instrumental in its development since inception. The team possesses the appropriate mix of multi-disciplinary expertise and experience.
• The Banyan Tree Hotels and Resorts were designed to blend into the natural landscape as compared to the other brands.

• They used natural foliage and boulders as a privacy screen, the furnishing  were deliberately native to convey the exoticism of the destination with its rich local flavor and luxurious  feel .

2. How important is it for the brand to be considered local versus global?

Brand Positioning: Market positioning is ranked number one on the list of Banyan tree’s strategies which lead to the success of this hotel chain. The idea of entering the luxury resorts market for Banyan Tree was inspired by the sharp price gap between the luxurious resort hotels such as Aman and other resorts such as Shangari-la, the founder of Banyan tree saw potential for offering an innovative niche product that could bridge the price gap in this market This is also verified from the interviews with management staff when asking them about their target markets comparing with other competitors. Furthermore, all Banyan tree resorts and villas were designed around the concept of providing “a sense of place” to reflect and enhance the culture and heritage of the destination. In the meanwhile, the resorts were designed to blend into the natural landscape of the surrounding environment and use the natural foliage and boulders as a privacy screen for creating a sense of exotic sensuality and ensure the privacy of its guests.

Unique brand marketing strategy: When Banyan tree was first launched, extensive advertising was carried out for a short period of time to gain recognition in the industry. But soon later, the company scaled down on the advertising. From that time, the entire brand marketing has been based on public relations and global marketing programs, for example, relationships with travel editors and the resorts. This helped increase editorial coverage on Banyan tree, which management felt was more effective in conveying the “Banyan Tree Experience” from an impartial third-party perspective Furthermore, word-of-mouth recommendation is also another channel for brand marking. As one of the customers mentioned: I get to know this hotel brand from my girlfriend. She strongly recommends me to stay here.

 Expansion Strategy: Considering the need of the market on its spa and other products, Banyan tree expanded its network of spas and retail outlet. Nowadays, the Banyan Tree Spas and Banyan Tree Galleries were set up as separate ventures in Singapore, Shanghai, Sydney, India, and Dubai, operating either in other hotels or as stand-alone outlets. In the meanwhile, Banyan tree introduces the Angsana brand in response to demand from hotel operations in Asian that were keen to introduce spas services in their hotels. As the positioning of these hotels did not fit that of Banyan Tree, the company decided to launch a new brand, Angsana, a more contemporary and affordable brand than Banyan Tree, to run as stand-alone spa businesses In other hotels.

Quality Products: Products consistency and uniqueness are another two characteristics of Banyan Tree hotels. These were noticed during the site visits and interviews. Guest room facilities, bedding and even the aroma are quite similar in all the Banyan tree hotels. As Guest A stated that: No matter which city I am in, I prefer to stay in Banyan tree as I can find the familiar aroma and same bedding which make me feel at home.

Unique products also make Banyan tree hotels different with others and customer satisfaction is their service standard.