Honolulu Hotels Shift Sights Toward Corporate Market

<B> Honolulu Hotels Shift Sights Toward Corporate Market</B>

By Judy Jacobs

A downturn in the Asian market and the opening of the new Hawai'i Convention Center are encouraging Honolulu hotels to turn their sights to corporate meetings and transient travelers.

Although these sectors total only a small percentage of the entire market, they are expected to play an increasingly important role in the coming years.

The three hotels closest to the new convention center--the Ala Moana, the Ilikai and the Prince--already are well entrenched in the corporate market and expect to benefit even further from their location near the center. But many of the hotels looking for corporate buyers are small, boutique-style properties.

The Aston Waikiki Beachside, for example, this year made "an increased effort to improve our facilities for business travelers," said Donna Wheeler, general manager of the 79-room hotel that sits across from Waikiki Beach. Changes include the creation of a library overlooking the beach that opened in June. The room has the look of a den and features a scanner, fax machine and printer into which business travelers can plug their laptops. A fee of $25 per day includes $25 worth of faxes and free beverages.

Another hotel that has redirected its marketing strategy toward the corporate market is the Waikiki Joy. "Once the Japanese market started going down, we began to target corporate travelers," said general manager Hamilton Toledo. "Until February, the corporate market was only 10-15 percent of our business, and now it's 30 percent."

Half of the Joy's 94 units are hotel rooms and half are suites--each with two phone jacks for computer hook-ups, coffee makers, refrigerators and full-sized jacuzzis. Toledo feels the small size is the hotel's primary advantage. "Guests like staying in a small hotel because it's kind of like a family," he said.

The Waikiki Parc, at 298 rooms, is another smaller hotel frequented by business travelers, who make up about 20 percent of its clientele. "The size of our hotel creates a user-friendly atmosphere," said sales director Michael Kikuyama. "We have just one tower, and it's very safe here, so we attract a lot of female business travelers."

Hoping to capitalize on the market, the Waikiki Parc in May added a 24-hour business services center with a full-time concierge and an executive conference room that seats up to 10 people. It's also considering adding a fitness center.

Among the large properties, Aston in February took over management of the hotel that caters more to the corporate market than any other in Hawaii. The Aston at the Executive Center, located in downtown Honolulu, has a mix of 85 percent business travelers. Aston is planning a major renovation next year that will add two more floors with 24 rooms to the 116-room property. Facilities include a 24-hour business center and fitness center. It has two conference rooms measuring 715 and 360 square feet respectively, as well as three board rooms of 175 square feet each.

The Ala Moana Hotel has 1,169 rooms, including 180 concierge rooms on six floors. It is adding fax machines in 63 rooms, said John Cushnie, general manager. About 30 percent of the hotel's business is corporate and 20 percent is from government workers, he said.

The 800-room Ilikai Hotel Nikko Waikiki hopes to grow its 30 percent corporate business "through service and other intangibles,"said sales director Haunani Hendrix.

The Ilikai also has plenty of tangibles to attract corporate buyers. "Some of the large rooms in the tower measure over 600 square feet, and many of them offer full-sized kitchens. Some of our dedicated floors have in-room fax machines. We offer NExT (Nikko Executive Touch) floors with a Nikko lounge, continental breakfast and newspapers," she said.

The Hawaii Prince Hotel also has changed its marketing strategy since opening eight years ago. "When we opened we targeted the leisure market," said Alvin Wong, the hotel's director of sales. "About six years ago, we started to focus on the corporate market and added a fitness center and business center."

The hotel has special Guest Office Rooms, which incorporate two separate phone lines, a fax/copier/printer, speakerphone with dual dataport, ergonomic desk chair, 3 p.m. checkout and an $8 per day breakfast credit. Meeting facilities include eight function rooms, with the largest a ballroom seating 560 for banquets. The hotel is also the only property in Waikiki to own and operate a golf course, a 27-hole course designed by golf pro Arnold Palmer.

The nearby Prince, too, hopes to benefit from its location as the closest hotel in Waikiki to the new Hawai'i Convention Center. "We don't plan to be a convention hotel, but expect to get some of that business. Our group share is now less than 10 percent--and I'd like to see it at 20 to 25 percent," Wong said.

In Waikiki, the Doubletree Alana is spending $500,000 to remodel its restaurant and lounge, which will reopen as the Philippe Padovani Bistro & Wine Bar.

The hotel already was repositioned as a business property when Doubletree took over its management last year. Each room has three phones and data ports, and there's a 24-hour business center. For conferences, it offers 7,000 square feet of meeting space in six rooms, the largest accommodating 150 people.