Christoph J Knichel, General Manager of Pathumwan Princess Hotel, on steering the hotel to five-star status and what the upgrade has meant for business
Life here has its ups and downs, of course, but after three years here I still very much love living in Thailand. My wife, Nathalie, and I now live in Sathorn – about a 20 minute drive from the hotel – and it’s good to have that life outside of the premises. To have the hotel upgraded last year to five-star was fantastic, and I think well deserved. The hardware was always good when I first came here, but it was nice that I could really be involved with the software – shaping the service, listening to guests’ needs and reacting to them. I mean, it’s always satisfying when you do something and it works. There is no switch that turns when you become five-star that changes the whole nature of the business, that makes you more popular. It’s a gradual process. After-all, there are many five-star properties opening in town which go into every detail of the five star experience – stunning designs, personalized service – so competition is fierce. We have to realize this and position ourselves to match, if not better, what they have to offer. |