Tuesday, 25 September 2012 19:30
Mövenpick Hotel and Resorts group, an upscale European hotel management firm, chose Cebu to host its flagship presence in the Philippines, while four other projects within the country are in the pipeline.
Mövenpick’s pioneer project in Cebu has inked a partnership with Oikonomos International Resources Corp. owned by Manny O. Wines creator Manuel Osmeña.
Over P3.0 billion was invested to develop the beachfront community now known as Mövenpick Cebu Resort & Towers, which houses the internationally branded Mövenpick Cebu Residences. His firm also owns SkyLogistics and SkyKitchen, the airport services and in-flight food service provider of Philippine Airlines, and Cebu Pacific Catering Services, the only air caterer serving all airlines in Mactan Cebu International Airport, partners with Cathay Pacific Airways and Macro-Asia Corp.
The Cebu residential and resort complex located in Punta Engaño, Mactan Island, is made up of three towers with a front-seat view facing the Hilutungan Channel.
“Of all places, the first Mövenpick brand in the Philippines found Cebu as its natural choice. When you want luxury and the good life, this is the place to be,” said Osmeña.
Osmeña and CB Richard Ellis Chairman Rick Santos signed the ceremonial contract recently, together with Mövenpick director for business development Helmut Gaisberger, in time for the launch of Mövenpick Cebu Residences’ completion of its Phase Two project.
Phase One of the project has already sold over 90 percent of its 182 units.
Phase Two offers 66 fully fitted residences as lifestyle units, permanent residences or as an investment where owners may opt to lease their units in certain months of the year to be managed by Mövenpick.
This business model has been popular among European property chains, especially in the coastal communities of Marbella in Spain, Algarve in Portugal and St. Tropez and Monte Carlo in France, where owners come for the holidays and rent out their units or vacation homes for the rest of the months in a year.
Each unit has a floor area ranging from 52 to 113 sq m available in one- and two-bedroom models, with balconies and seaside views. The residences are offered at a starting price of P125,000 per sq m exclusive of value-added tax.
The design of the luxury beachfront community is inspired by Southern European design, with traces of French, Spanish, Portuguese and Italian touches, set in world-class amenities.
“We’re staying away from the predictable,” said Osmeña. “In fact, it will be something that has never been seen before in the Philippines.”
To do that, Mövenpick Cebu Residences tapped a team of world-renowned Filipino designers—Manny Samson, Ivy and Cynthia Almario, and Fred and Butch Valdez, also known as i5—to plan the upgrades and renovations of the grand lobby, pool and recreation areas—particularly the Ibiza-inspired Beach Club by the beachfront.
“I call it ‘barefoot elegance.’ I promise you, there’s nothing like it in the Philippines but here,” Osmeña said.
It’s more fun ‘to stay’ in the Philippines
Osmeña highlights the role of property development in line with the new tourism slogan “It’s more fun in the Philippines.” The man behind Manny O. wines, which has won 72 international awards from 10 countries, said he hopes to have his Mövenpick Cebu Residences become an example to showcase that special touch of Filipino hospitality fused with Swiss precision.
He emphasized that tourism development is defined by the brand of service a place can offer.
“The Filipinos are very flexible. We are hospitable by nature,” he said. “I’ve traveled to the best places around the world and oftentimes service is done as a job responsibility. But here, we enjoy making other people happy, we always find the silver lining in anything and we like having ‘fun’ with what we do. And that translates in our service. It is truly more fun in the Philippines.”
Within the Philippine property circles, the Mövenpick Hotels and Resorts group has partnered with four other investors to develop upscale hotel and resort communities in the nation’s hottest tourist hubs.
An island resort is set for completion later this year in Palawan, while two other sights have been set to start construction in the Makati area. Two other resort properties are in the works and will be announced soon.
The Mövenpick Huma Island Resort near Coron, Palawan, which is in its finishing stage, is modeled after the resorts in the Maldives; it has 82 over-water villas.
Gaisberger said the four other properties have different developers with a completion timetable of three years.
“We have several other projects and we are very interested in places where people go to,” he said.
Asian expansion
Gaisberger said Mövenpick is expanding in Asia due to the economic boom in the region.
“We are a little late in coming to Asia, but better late than never. We are now very aggressive in Asia and I would say that in a few years’ time, we will have over 20 locations,” he said.
The Mövenpick Hotel Group was born in 1973 in Zurich, Switzerland. It currently has 90 properties in operation and under construction in Europe, Africa, the Middle East and now Asia.
Mövenpick Cebu Residences and its Resort and Spa sister property is the 15th signed Mövenpick hotel in Asia. Since 2010, Mövenpick Hotels and Resorts has extended its Asian presence in Thailand, Vietnam, China, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, India and Singapore.
Oikonomos and Mövenpick tapped the services of CB Richard Ellis Philippines as its lead broker for the internationally branded Mövenpick Cebu Residences.
The Philippines is becoming a well-positioned market in Asia for hotels because of lower real-estate prices and better customer service provided, according to Rick Santos.
“We are seeing impressive growth in cities like Cebu and surrounding areas. Now is a good time for the hotel and leisure sector in the Philippines. I cannot think of a better time to enter into this partnership,” said Santos.
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