스케치 WIT Tokyo & North Asia 2018 - [Best of WIT Seoul]

대한민국 호텔업계의 아이돌!!!ㅋ

늙은 호텔리어 몽돌이 WIT Tokyo & North Asia 2018의 패널로 참가하게 되었어요. 

Best in WIT Seoul이라 이름된 세션인데, 아이돌없이 진행된다면 앙꼬없는 찐빵, 그야말로 김빠진 콜라가 되는 것이죠. 

WIT Tokyo & North Asia 2018

아마도 지난 4월의 WIT Seoul 행사의 주요한 내용을 소개하는 자리인 듯 보이더군요. 사실 늙은 몽돌은 초대를 받고 좀 망설였습니다. 회사일로 여유가 없었거든요. 하지만 호텔리어인 제가 Best in WIT Seoul의 패널로 선정된 이유를 다시금 생각했습니다.

WIT는 OTA 편중으로 부터 탈피해 여행산업 중 주요한 한 분야인 호텔로의 확장을 모색하기 위해 노력하고 있는 듯 했어요. 그 컨택이 우리나라에선 '어쩌다 늙은몽돌'인 셈이죠. 저 역시 우리나라 호텔산업의 발전을 위해 WIT의 노력을 활용하며 윈윈할 수 있다는 가능성을 엿봤고, 좀 무리한 스케쥴임에도 참석을 결정했어요.

도쿄 행사에서 전 우리나라 호텔 산업의 현황 정도를 간단히 소개했습니다. 나이가 들면 여러가지가 바뀌나봐요. 준비가 좀 부족했지만 크게 긴장되지도 않더군요. 긴장을 통제하는 감각기관도 아마 나이 먹는 듯....ㅠ 아무튼 제가 당시 발표한 내용만 간추려 아래에 영문으로 정리했습니다. 크게 중요한 내용이 아니니 패쓰하셔도 좋고요. 

내년 WIT Seoul에서는 WIT, 새롭게 출범한 호텔리어협회 그리고 호텔아비아의 협업으로 대한민국 젊은 호텔리어들을 위한 프로그램, boot camp를 기획하고 있습니다. 내년 4월이에요.

WIT에 대해 잘 모르시는 분들께서는 링크 참고

그나저나 WIT Tokyo & North Asia 2018의 규모는 4월 서울 행사보다 훨씬 큽니다. Boot Camp를 포함해 이틀동안 진행되었고요, 제가 참석한 2일차 본행사 참석자는 500여명에 이르는 듯 보이더군요. 엄청납니다. 호텔 산업에 관련된 프로그램도 적지 않았었는데, 전 도쿄의 호텔들을 구경하고 싶은 마음에 제 발표 후 바로 나와 도쿄 시내를 배회하고 다녔지 뭡니까?

참고로, 내년 WIT Tokyo & North Asia 2018 행사의 이름은 WIT Tokyo로 바뀌어야 하지 않을까 싶던데요? Seoul의 행사가 잘 자리잡는다면 도쿄 행사에 태그된 'North Asia'라는 타이틀은 제외되어야 마땅하다고 보는데, 기회가 된다면 한번 건의해 볼 작정입니다.

WIT Tokyo & North Asia 2018

WIT Tokyo and North Asia 2018

11:30 am - 12:00 pm

Best of WIT Seoul

 

There’s lots of exciting things happening in South Korea as the record turnout of 330 delegates learnt at WIT Seoul 2018, which took place on April 3 this year. This session will cover all that’s hot and topical in this country of 51m people, but has double the smartphone population and where 70% of folks under 12 own a smartphone.

Min Yoon, CEO, Tidesquare (South Korea)

Injin Kim, Director of Asset Management, CDL Hotels Korea

Ryan Kangjoon Lee, Chief Investment Officer, Dunamu Inc.

Masahiro Yamashita, Head of Northeast Asia, KAYAK

Moderator: Yeoh Siew Hoon, Founder & Managing Director, Web In Travel

Objective: To raise awareness of the latest trends and developments in the South Korean online travel market and the opportunities to capture the growth of a rapidly changing market.

WIT Tokyo & North Asia 2018

Talks

 

Q: Injin, you’re a veteran in hospitality and responsible for managing CDL hotel assets. Hotels in South Korea seem more reliant on OTAs than in Japan, and meta-search is emerging. What are the concerns facing hoteliers, when it comes to distribution?

 

A: It’s actually true. A couple of reasons like high tech oriented consumer, relatively small demand market for hotel, etc.

For some 4 star hotels last year, OTA share reached up around 70~80%. Anyway, more reliant on OTA means more burden on P&L This heavy reliance asked them to look back and they realized the importance of direct booking and channel management.

More importantly, local hotels start to get seriously concerned about something that can make them different from others (appeal to customer). No matter it's called as competitiveness or uniqueness. Now it’s a kind of transitional stage for Korea hotel industry to level-up.

WIT Tokyo & North Asia 2018

Q: In contrast to outbound boom up, inbound is struggling, yet more hotels are being built. What is your thought?

Feel bad whenever I hear about outbound trend. Inbound market endured serious set back in recent 3 years. See the graph. Next page please.

Red line is for hotel supply and blue is for foreign traveler visits. Inventories almost doubled compared to 5 years ago, but sharp decrease in foreign tourist in 2017.

We know why. It’s all about China and somebody says it’s so called Koreaoom discount.

Still tough, but we are getting back from the bottom (since diplomatic and political issues are easing off). In a couple of years, the market will be much better even though big numbers are still on pipeline (on pipeline 132 hotels/19,700 rooms in Seoul only).

It serve actually as a good chance to think seriously about competiveness of our travel industry including Hotel. In addition, the diplomatic relaxation between Koreas and US will be a big chance for us.

WIT Tokyo & North Asia 2018

Q: Globally, we’re seeing a trend towards design/lifestyle hotels and in South Korea, the trend is beginning – Shilla with Shilla Stay, Lotte with L7, Starwood has aloft. CDL is bringing in M Social – tell us about that trend and how you intend to differentiate?

Tough competition with doubled inventory supply for the last 5 years. hotels in Korea finally got to think seriously about the quality and uniqueness. They also started to focus on locals.

Various attempts have been tried with new types of hotels. Some by big companies like Shilla and Lotte, but not that impressive.Some independent hotels like Handpicked stands out and Korean styled accommodations like Kyoungwonjae have been highlighted.

M Social, which is tech driven lifestyle brand born at Singapore that we are considering for our new project in Seoul. They’ve got robots there. It’s not a just simple décor. It works very hard. Unique loft styled room with young and fresh designs by Philip Starck. I guess it will suits quite well for the country like high tech sensitive Korea.

WIT Tokyo & North Asia 2018

Q: Min, you were one of the first to invest in a private/alternative accommodation site, B&B Hero, and you’ve said you were probably too early. Obviously it is the right time now – Airbnb is growing well in Korea, and Korea is Hostel world’s fastest growing market in Asia, their seventh biggest globally. What’s happening in this sector?

 

Addition by IJ: One more point. Korea also thinking about legislation like Japan. Bottom line is they should compete with hotel on fair ground. They should pay proper tax and they should be equipped with security things that are required by government to hotels.

그나저나 웨스틴도쿄 호텔, 나쁘지 않은데요? 웨스틴의 일반적인 정체성과는 달리 꽤 클래식합니다. 그런면에선 웨스틴조선 서울과 유사해 보이는 면도 없지 않더군요.

점심 자리에서 본 바도 흥미롭습니다. 서버들 중 예순을 넘긴 호텔리어도 꽤 많구요, 동남아 등지로 부터 온 호텔리어도 많이 눈에 띕니다. 우리나라요? 조만간 닥칠 트랜드입니다. 그것도 훨씬 심각한 수준으로...

여러가지가 달라지겠죠. 외노자뿐만 아니라, 정년, 아웃소싱과의 관계, 학생 노동력의 활용 행태 등등.... 양질의 노동력을 확보하기 위한 전쟁이 벌어질지도 몰라요. 한껏 부정적인 이미지를 가진 로봇,키리스 등 하이텍으로부터 적어도 호텔산업은 수혜를 볼 수도 있겠다 싶기도 합니다.

물론 한국으로부터 건너온 호텔리어들도 왠만한 호텔엔 빠짐없이 근무하고 계시는군요. 웨스틴도쿄에는 판촉부에 한 분이 근무하셔서 잠시 뵙고 왔습니다. 왠지 안심되고 꽤 든든했어요.

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