Most prominent hotel groups don’t actually own their hotels. Instead, when you stay at a Marriott or a Hilton, the building is often owned by someone else—usually a developer—while the hotel company handles the operations.
That’s not the case for Shangri-La Hotel and Resorts, founded by Malaysian tycoon Robert Kuok in 1971, and now led by his daughter Kuok Hui Kwong. The chain operates over 100 properties worldwide, over 80 of which are owned by Shangri-La.
Kuok Hui Kwong, speaking at the Fortune Innovation Forum on Tuesday, recalled why her father chose this asset-heavy model. “No one else was doing it. Land was very affordable, and I took a risk,” she recounted her father as saying.
The Shangri-La hotel chain has its roots in Asia, starting with its first hotel in Singapore. Around 80% of their hotels are still based in the Asia-Pacific region.
Kuok said the company’s success comes from the core tenets of Asian hospitality. “[Asian hospitality is] not white linen tablecloths, it’s not sterling silver candlesticks—it’s warmth and attention to detail,” she said.
