TODAY

An agreement between Accor and Myat Min Co Ltd to build two world-standard hotels and a Service Apartment in Yangon and Inle was signed in a ceremony at the Novotel Bangkok Platinum Pratunam on November 5, 2013, where Accor’s Senior Vice President Mr Patrick Basset delivered a speech.
Pullman Yangon Myat Min Hotel and The Sebel Yangon Myat Min Premium Service Apartment will be built in a four-acre land plot near the Okkala Golf Club, Yangon. The four-star Novotel Inle Lake Myat Min Hotel will be built in Inle.
The total investment share of USD 65 million for the projected hotel was taken by Myat Min Co Ltd, and Accor will take full charge of the hotel’s management.
Novotel Inle Lake is designed as a resort hotel with a total of 123 rooms. Pullman Yangon Myat Min is a business hotel type with 300 rooms. The Sebel Yangon Myat Min will have about 100 rooms: single rooms, double rooms, etc. A total of about 500 employees will be hired for them.
Novotel Inle Lake Myat Min is expected to be opened in about 2014, and Pullman Yangon Myat Min and Sebel Yangon Myat Min at about the end of 2015.
Myat Min CoLtd has a plan to make furth er investment in strategic locations such a Mandalay, Ngapali and Bagan.
Accor is one of the world’s largest hotel mangement companies operating a total of 3500 hotels with 450,000 rooms in 92 countries worldwide. Myat Min Co Ltd was inspired by its trust in Accor that has a good understanding of the local mentality and culture in their investment region of Asia Pacific.
The following is an except from TODAY is brief interview with Mr. Michael Issenberg, Accor’s chairman of Asia Pacific.

Mr. Michael Issenberg
Accor’s chairman of Asia Pacific

What, in your view, are the prospects for Myanmar’s hotel and tourist industry?
Myanmar has a large number of sites of cultural interest and natural beauty. There’s a growing worldwide interest in Myanmar. These two factors can make for a bright future for Myanmar’s tourism. But there’s a lot to do to make that happen.

What plan have you got to be competitive with other foreign tourist business people already coming in?

What matters is that we come to Myanmar as an already well-established brand. Another thing important for us to do is to provide new recruits with training, One of the benefits you can go in from foreign entrepreneurs here is the trainig they provide. Training is the first priority in our plan ,of work.

Have you got any plan for job creation in Myanmar?
We have a plan to build three hotels in 2014 and to hire some nine hundred enployees. We have a training programme for them.

What difficulties do you expect in applying your Accor business practices in Myanmar?
In the begining we might have some difficulties dealing with banks here. But we’re seeing rapid changes in Myanmar’s banking. Language might be a difficulty, too. With Myanmar open-ing up more and more many foreign visitors’ll come and making it essential for you to know English well. Accor will try to help meet the needs of foreign visitors in the best way we usually do.

Please let me know your CSR plan
At the moment as we’re just at the start here we don’t have any CSR-related plan, but in future we will. As I said earlier we’ll focus on job-relcteed training, and we’ll get our employees involved in our CSR work eventually.

What’re your criteria for business people wishing to work with you?
The first thing is the state of their finance. The second is how much they’ve learnt about the way we do our business, in order for them to be compatible with us. We also see whether we can apply our hotel mangement style. We have to hold discussian on these things before we can make a deal.

What’re the requirements for Myanmar’s hotel industry to develop from your point of view as an international hotel manage-ment company?
Protection of natural environment development of infrastructure and also labour laws are important for the development of hotel industry. There should also be an effective enforcement of rules and regulations. Building codes are just as important.