Peninsula is slowly but surely making inroads into Europe. Why now?
Peter Borer - We are almost always majority shareholders in our hotels and we are developing in a very responsible way. We started expanding around thirty years ago, first in the major cities of Asia, then in North America and now in Europe. After Paris in 2014, a new hotel will open in London within the next five years, near Hyde Park Corner. We always choose the best location. Similarly, our future hotel in Istanbul will benefit from an exceptional location on the banks of the Bosphorus. It will encompass three magnificent old buildings, to which we will add a fourth, complete with function rooms.
Istanbul is your first address in an emerging country. What potential does your brand have in these destinations of the future?
Peter Borer - It's a very attractive market for business and leisure. So it's a very Peninsula city. In Burma, we have started work on the renovation of the former railway headquarters in Yangon, which will take four years. It's a very dilapidated building, but it's right in the city centre, in the heart of an up-and-coming district. What happens next? It's possible that our brand will be established in New Delhi, Mexico City and Sao Paulo, all major cities of the future where there are more and more international customers and where it's important for us to make a name for ourselves.
Let's go back to Paris. Has your hotel established itself in this market?
Peter Borer - We have a certain amount of experience, as we will be celebrating our 150th anniversary next year. We've always managed to make our mark in every city where we've set up shop, in New York and Tokyo. It will be the same in Paris and soon in London. It takes just over three years for a hotel to become well established. We hope that Parisians will make the Peninsula their own. Especially as the hotel has a lot going for it, with the most entertaining Chinese restaurant in Paris, as well as a huge terrace and a car park.
