Raffles ends management of Tianjin hotel
23 January 2012
Raffles Hotels & Resorts has announced it has ceased to management the Raffles Tianjin less than two years after the property first opened.
In a statement, Raffles cited said ‘irreconcilable differences’ with the property owner as the reason for its decision to terminate the management agreement. The hotel company added that it continued to place importance on the China market, and would continue to operate its other China property, the Raffles Beijing Hotel. It also reaffirmed its intention to open a property in Hainan later in 2012.
As previously reported by Hotel Management Asia, Raffles opened the Raffles Tianjin in March 2010. Occupying the top 36 to 50 floors of the Tianjin Centre’s West Tower, the 116-room property was the tallest penthouse hotel in Tianjin, and second Raffles hotel in China after the opening of the Raffles Beijing in 2006.
A page on the Raffles website stated that the ‘Raffles Hotels & Resorts is no longer managing Raffles Tianjin with immediate effect.’
The hotel has been renamed Tianjin Centre Hotel effective until new management is in place.
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This is a classic example of a foreign hotel management without the in depth knowledge of how to operate in China. Doing business in China requires the know how and the "connection". Finding a right partners in China requires experiences. Hire the right people to expand the company.