New, old hotel

Krzysztof Woliński, the general director of the Regent Warsaw Hotel: Indeed, on March 19th the former Hyatt hotel stopped operating under the brand. The hotel was operated on a management basis. The Hyatt brand provided us with its know-how, reservation systems, marketing support and sales procedures, but we operated as a separate team dependent on the building’s owner from the beginning. The owner is Cosmar Polska, which decided that in these circumstances the hotel would operate as an independent facility. We have chosen a new name – the Regent Warsaw Hotel – and a new signboard will be mounted soon. This is one of the few changes that have been introduced. In the meantime, I have taken on the position of general director, even though I used to work in Hyatt’s structures. The hotel’s quality of service has not been diminished; on the contrary, we are expecting to be awarded our fifth star soon. We are not planning to reduce the standards. This might sound controversial, but you can actually benefit from independent operations in the hotel business.

What does that mean? A large number of hotel owners in Poland are looking to find a chain partner.

Of course, I meant hotels that already exist, are well established and have a loyal clientele that comes back. Newly-built ones have to look for the support of a large operator. Since the moment the Hyatt chain withdrew from this kind of arrangement, over two months ago, we have been operating independently and we have not suffered any fall in the number of guests. Occupancy is comparable to the same period last year. Besides, we no longer have to pay licence fees, thanks to which we can use the extra money to improve the standard of the hotel. Our strength did not result purely from the ‘Hyatt’ name, but from how well the hotel functioned and the level of service we guaranteed and continue to guarantee. We informed our guests about the situation and for the vast majority of them the name change has no significance. It is our personal service and well-trained staff that has been appreciated by guests on numerous occasions, and it is now pay off.

Let’s come back to the use of the cash resources that had previously been allocated to licence fees...

Yes, we are planning to invest the money in improving the Regent Warsaw Hotel. We are planning the modernisation and refurbishment of the interior. With what scope and when – this is subject to our negotiations with the building’s owner. However, we are planning some changes and they will certainly take place. The building is quite large: it has 246 rooms, 13 halls for conferences, a restaurant, a ballroom, a spa centre and a special executive club. We are currently replacing the cosmetics line offered for a more expensive, exclusive one. We are extending our programme for families with children: we have commissioned the writing of a comic book about the bees that live in the roof of the hotel, and have provided crayons and soft toys for the young ones. In this way we want to encourage the so-called ‘weekend guests’ to stay in our hotel. In addition to that, we will continue to look after the bee hives – the bees produce the ecological honey that we serve in our restaurant. We have had a different operator for the spa section for a year. Now it is managed by Holmes Place and is premium standard.

Still, losing the protection of a famous brand is certain to cause some problems?

As far as the reservation system is concerned, we have cooperated with external reservation systems and portals for a long time, where you can recommend and evaluate a hotel, such as Booking.com. We are in the process of building a new website that will be user-friendly and well positioned on the internet. Our sales department is fully professional and maintains contracts with the public institutions and companies that choose our hotel. In our database we have many guests who have visited us more than 100 times, some of them as many as 140 times. Due to our convenient location, at the junction of ul. Belwederska and ul. Spacerowa near the embassies, we are able to host famous people, politicians, sportsmen and singers. These have included George Michael, Leonard Cohen, Herman Van Rompuy and the Rolling Stones. These are people used to the best quality and they come back to their favourite places.

The Regent Warsaw Hotel is currently operating as an independent facility. Will it stay this way?

Cosmar Polska has decided that the hotel will function in this way for the time being. Will it stay like this? If our management concept proves successful, I do not see any obstacles in the way of continuing independent operations. However, different variants will be taken into consideration. The hotel is an investment that is supposed to make profit. I am convinced that the building’s owner will choose the best and the most profitable form without compromising on the quality.

Is Cosmar Polska also considering selling the property?

All options are possible in the long term.