Phileas Law,SVP of Golden Tulip China(left), Pierre-Frederic Roulot, CEO of Louvre Hotels Group(middle), and Kim Min-soo, Head of Golden Tulip Korea(right).
SEOUL, Jan.29 (Korea Bizwire) – Louvre Hotels Group (www.louvrehotels.com), the fifth largest hotel chain in the world, officially opened its Korean office on January 28, and announced plans to open 17 hotels in Korea by 2020.
The company was established in France in 1976, and grew to become the second largest hotel chain in Europe. The enterprise was taken over last year by Shanghai Jinjiang International Hotel Group, which is the largest travel agency and hotel chain in China.
Jinjiang Group took over China’s Plateno Hotel Group in September 2015, becoming the fifth largest hotel chain in the world with 6,000 hotels across the globe.
The revenue earned through Louvre Hotels alone last year reached 1.6 billion euros.
Louvre Hotels Group confirmed its plan to launch eight Golden Tulip hotels in Korea by 2018, including the Golden Tulip Jeju Hamdeok, which is already in business, and the Golden Tulip M Seoul Hotel, which opened the day of the announcement.
Kim Min-su, Head of Golden Tulip Korea, commented that the company plans to open a hotel in each major city. “We plan to open 17 hotels by 2020, securing 6,000 rooms in total. Our goal is to become one of the top three brands internationally as well as domestically,” he said.
“Korea is a noticeable market considering its population and economic maturity. It is a popular spot for traveling, and holds great demand for clients who visit the region on business. We are also considering three to five star hotels from the Louvre Group such as Campanile and Kyriad to enter the Korean market as the official Korean headquarters is launched,” said Pierre-Frederic Roulot, the CEO of Louvre Hotel Group, commenting on the potential of the Korean market.
Louvre officials also revealed that as the company enters the Korean market, it could also play a role in attracting Chinese tourists.
Roulot commented that by promoting the hotel brand through the travel agencies run by Jinjiang Group, the new hotels are well-positioned to attract Chinese tourists. The effect has already been confirmed in France.
As Jinjiang Group holds 35 percent of the Chinese market for overseas travel, Kim expects the number of Chinese clients to increase, as the number of Chinese tourists traveling abroad is increasing by 50 percent every year.
By Lina Jang (linajang@koreabizwire.com)
