Shangri-La Ltd Marketing Plan
History
Shangri-La is an Asian five-star luxury hotel. It was incorporated in 1971 in Singapore, and has now a total of 72 hotels spread in many countries around the world. The name Shangri-La which is the synonym of tranquility and service for which Shangri-La is well-known for around the world was inspired by the novel of James Hilton, Lost horizon that was published in 1933. The novel inspired legendary land features.
Shangri-La Ltd. is owned by the Kuoks group. The Kuok family who immigrated in Malaysia in the first decade of the 20th century entered many types of businesses, including rice, flour and sugar. In the early 70s he entered the business of real estate and property development. Kuoks Kerry entrance into the real estate business was a huge success since he became the number one property groups in Hong Kong with major real estate holdings and developments throughout the Asian region, including the Chinese mainland, as well as Australia and elsewhere. One of his early real estate purchases was a hotel in Singapore which was built in 1971. This hotel was the beginning of the now Shangri-La chain hotels. Together with two experienced professionals who worked earlier for the Westin hotels Kuok launched the Shangri-La hotels in 1982. In 1984 Kuoks opened its first luxury hotel on the Chinese mainland, in Hangzhou. It was the first luxury hotel to be established in the country. The companys ability to plan for the long term was the main reason to choose that market for their establishment. Instead of choosing well known cities, they chose to target lesser known and smaller cities.
In 1989 Shangri-La launched a second hotel brand called Traders. Traders represented a mid-range brand although it offered the same level of luxury as Shangri-La hotels. Traders formed also part of the chains long-term strategy; they targeted areas with no luxury hotels. By the end of the 20th