JAKARTA, Indonesia—Though originally formed as a development consultant for Accor’s expansion into Indonesia, Tauzia Hotel Management showed its independent spirit from the early goings.
Formed in 2001, the management and development company launched its own brand concepts as early as 2002. By 2006, Tauzia began focusing almost all of its efforts internally.
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Marc Steinmeyer Tauzia Hotel Management |
The decision has paid off, said Founder and President Director Marc Steinmeyer via email. Tauzia now manages 16 hotels comprising 2,945 rooms and is aiming for an additional 65 hotels comprising more than 10,000 rooms by the end of 2015.
The company boasts four proprietary brands, including:
- the budget Pop! Hotels (four hotels under operation);
- economy Yello Hotels (none currently under operation);
- midscale Harris Hotels (11 under operation); and
- boutique Preference Hotels (none currently under operation).
The group has an ownership stake in three Pop! properties and plans to increase that number to five by year end.
Tauzia has one additional hotel under its “Managed by Tauzia” designation. The company is also the master franchisee in Southeast Asia for the Worldhotels network—a collection of 500 independent properties around the world.
“As Tauzia currently enjoys a complete portfolio of brands from budget to luxury markets, we prefer to focus more of the development of each brand in terms of quality and innovations” as opposed to seeking out third-party management contracts for other major brands, Steinmeyer said.
Beyond borders
Based in Jakarta, Tauzia’s 70-person corporate team is looking to expand its foothold beyond Indonesia and into neighboring countries such as Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam, Steinmeyer said.
“We wish to extend first our more established Harris brand in (Southeast Asia) and then later on followed by Yello and Pop! Hotels,” he said.
That said, there are still plenty of opportunities in the homeland.
“With a population of around 250 million people, Indonesia is the largest archipelago with 17,000 islands from east to west, which is equivalent of the (coast-to-coast width of the United States),” Steinmeyer explained.
A growing middle class coupled with a 60% of population below 35 years old, Indonesia Is becoming more attractive to all travelers, he added.
Not surprisingly, Tauzia’s brands exude a vibrant sense of youth. The Harris brand webpage, for example, touts the chain’s cool and relaxing atmosphere and “youthful color scheme.” And the Yello brand, which is still under development, will exude a more edgy, artistic vibe.
The potential to tap into Indonesia’s emerging culture of travelers, as well as those beyond the country’s borders, makes for some lofty ambitions. Steinmeyer said he hopes eventually to reach between 150 and 200 total properties.
The company is making significant progress toward that end. Tauzia has an additional 26 Pop! Hotels, 28 Harris hotels, six Yello hotels, two Worldhotels, one Preference hotel and two “Managed by Tauzia” hotels under development. All are expected to open by the end of 2015.
“However, we would like to emphasize the focus is not in the numbers but the brand values and image and more importantly the brand loyalty from our guests,” Steinmeyer said.
“Tauzia is above all its brand innovation and its people-oriented culture. Our hotels should be more than just hotels; it’s a spirit and a lifestyle in each market segment.”