Park Hyatt Tokyo
Philippe Roux-Dessarps
General Manager of Park Hyatt Tokyo
Park Hyatt Tokyo continues to provide “authentic omotenashi” in the city of Nishi-Shinjuku maintaining their unchanging values. It is evolution, not revolution. This is the reason and value behind Park Hyatt Tokyo for being chosen as the destination hotel.
Q. What unique services does Park Hyatt provide?
Among the four brands of Hyatt, Park Hyatt provides services in a very residential setting. We try to adapt everything we do to the particular guest and listen to their expectation. We are able to do this through a limited number of rooms and high number of associates who can provide the best possible service. In addition, every Park Hyatt is very different and has clear intentions to be relevant in our own region and area. From the day Park Hyatt Tokyo opened in 1994, we have created a culture that best matches the Japanese service together with the Western style.
Q. Give us your ideas on“omotenashi” (hospitality)
After the presentation for the Tokyo Olympic bid, “omotenashi” became known to the world. However, “omotenashi” has always been present throughout our hotel. This means to have pride in your culture. This is very important because the guests can sense if your host is proud of his or her origin. It’s something that makes them feel very welcome in Japan and Park Hyatt Tokyo. Another component of “omotenashi” is empathy. Empathy is to be able to put yourself in someone else’s shoes and trying to understand that person. It’s about reading people in a good way and understanding their expectation. “Reading the air” is a big strength and cultural advantage of Japan.
"Perfect Distance of Guests and Park Hyatt Tokyo"
We can and will provide everything our guests demand, but we try not to get in the way, especially for a marriage proposal. We will execute the ideas of our guests such as putting a ring in a chocolate cake, but the idea itself has to be planned by the guest. This might be one aspect that represents our perfect distance between our guest and the hotel.
“Evolution, Not Revolution”
Park Hyatt Tokyo hasn’t aged for 21 years. It has gone through the years in a very good way. The interiors designed by John Morford will continue to age beautifully in a timeless way. What we aim for is not revolution in the sense of changing everything, but evolution in the sense of continuing to adapt our product and services to the requirement of times. We changed to flat TVs, installed Wi-Fi and electric plugs on the bedside tables. The direction that was set 21 years ago is very still relevant and there’s no reason to change this. We just need to evolve through the guest expectations.
Q. What are your future goals as a General Manager?
Park Hyatt Tokyo will remain a key-player in the hotel scene of Tokyo. Evolution means to understand what our customers need and want. We cannot do things that are in fashion just to create buzz in the media. We want to do things that are real, with real partners. We will continue to be the trendsetter of our products and services in Tokyo and I believe we will manage it.
