KUALA LUMPUR: Selangor Dredging Bhd (SDB) will continue to invest in its hospitality asset, Hotel Maya, to upgrade facilities, amenities and service offerings in an aim to be in par with other top notch boutique hotel brand in the country.
General Manager Teekay Goh said recently, the hotel has also upgraded some rooms and amenities to be more conducive to guests both locals and international.
"Hotel Maya is indeed very fortunate to have a supportive shareholder in SDB," he told The New Straits Times in an email response.
Back in 2015, SDB has reportedly received offers to sell the hotel for an estimated RM230 million.
TeeKay, however, denied to elaborate on the matter, reiterating that the hotel has been doing better since 2015 in terms of occupancy rate.
On industry perspective, Teekay said tourist arrivals to Malaysia has been flattening according to some industry estimates.
He further said against this backdrop, new and upcoming hotels coupled with competition from AirBnB have also resulted in a challenging hotel environment for Malaysia.
"At the recent Invest Asia 2019, two recommendations were put forth which I quite agree with - one was for the implementation of multiple entry visas for visitors from single entry visas presently, and, two, continuous promotion of Malaysia as a tourism destination for the world," he said.
To that, TeeKay said the government and hotels must continue to work closely for the greater good of industry and its sustainability.
"At our end, our hotel continues to be a destination of choice for travellers from Europe, China and throughout Southeast Asia, especially Singapore," he added.
Further, Teekay said over the years, the company have successfully positioned Hotel Maya as a 5-star ‘boutique urban resort’ in the heart of Kuala Lumpur.
Without elaborating further, TeeKay said Hotel Maya have also established partnerships with airlines and social media platforms to enhance sales and brand awareness.
"On the marketing front, we are also constantly utilising our social media channels to inform the market on our offerings and winning value propositions," he said.
Elaborating on training and skill development of staff, TeeKay said employee training is a key priority for Hotel Maya.
"This year alone, we will be investing quite substantially to ensure our team gets the best training that the industry has to offer.
"On top of that, we are fortunate to have a trainer in-house to provide soft skills training like communicational skill, customer focused and so forth," he said.
Hotel Maya also select customised courses provided by Malaysia Association of Hotel Training and Education Centre (MAHTEC) as part of their staff training.