“Running a resort in China with 85% domestic business, and line staff turnover that was 50% last year, is a challenge,” says Eric Kee, general manager of Mandarin Oriental Sanya.
Sanya is the best-known area of 12,700 square-mile Hainan Island, often likened to Hawaii. Snowbirds flock here from colder winters in the north and, year round, vacationers of all ages come for weddings, honeymoons, golf weekends and other short breaks. There is incredibly good domestic airlift, but until November 2018, when Thomas Cook begins several direct routes from western Europe, international flights are confined to a few Russian cities and Hong Kong (fly direct into Sanya airport and you do not need a visa).
Mandarin Oriental Sanya has 296 keys, and guests are nearly all leisure, with an expanding small-meeting segment. During winter there are such long stayers as a couple of Chinese businessmen who actually run their businesses from here, flying in lucky colleagues for weekly meetings. All told, the average stay is six nights and 25% of guests are repeats.
The 500-strong staff count, from all over China, also includes 13 expats, and, at any one time, five students from Swiss hotel schools on short-term contracts. “Added to staff turnover, one big challenge is increasing competition,” Kee revealed – the Sanya area has over 42,000 hotel rooms, and by the end of 2018 another 15,000 will have been added.
One major plus is that Mandarin Oriental Sanya opened in 2008, as the area’s first big international luxury brand, and from the start it attracted more overseas business: Today, some competitors operate on a 97% domestic market share, which actually prevents overseas components growing. Another advantage is space, namely 12 beach-side acres, with gorgeous landscaping. “Some garden walls are lava rocks, which continuously release minuscule amounts of healthy minerals –these help everyone feel better,” Kee explained.
The hotel offers guests bespoke wellness programs, and the GM wants his team to feel better, too. The canteen has added more healthy foods, and there are group fitness runs. Despite all this, entry-level staffers will job-hop for a few dollars. Middle management, with turnover of only 5%, is most stable. “We stress promotion, say working towards MBAs. We house everyone splendidly, 15 minutes from the resort – females on the top floor, males below, then, working down, married couples, and next down, expats and senior management.”
Before finishing high school in Malaysia, Kee realized he was not good at math or science, so he settled on hospitality (“as soon as I could I went on to college, but could not get government funding – my widowed mother arranged that the extended family would cover 50% of the cost and I earned the remainder in a KFC”). He helped a friend run Chinese restaurants in Pennsylvania, working up to restaurant manager. He headed for Macau, and joined Mandarin Oriental at their Bella Vista boutique hotel. Later, when he was GM of Pan Pacific Xiamen, he was summoned to Sanya.
“Looking back, flipping KFC orders is so far removed from dining here, with clients, overlooking the South China Sea and eating Hainan rock crabs wok-fried in black pepper sauce,” he declared.