SK Hotels’ Scott Walton talks new hotels and destinations coming up in Thailand, innovation and technology
The publish SK Motels’ Scott Walton talks new motels and locations developing in Thailand, innovation and expertise appeared first on TD (Journey Every day Media) Journey Every day Media.
SK Motels is constant its growth in Thailand, with a handful of latest properties developing within the capital Bangkok and new locations throughout the nation set to broaden its current portfolio. Managing director Scott Walton talks with TDM concerning the progress, and the way innovation and expertise are enjoying key roles.
Journey Every day Media (TDM): Are you able to give us a top level view of the present SK Motels property portfolio, and taking into consideration your progress plans, new properties within the pipeline?
Scott Walton: SK Motels was established as a three way partnership between Siamese Asset, a publicly listed property developer primarily based in Bangkok, and Kew Inexperienced Motels within the UK, a hospitality group with a portfolio of 44 owned and 16 managed properties throughout the UK and Europe. The partnership was born from a strategic imaginative and prescient: leaders from Siamese Asset visited the UK and have been struck by how effectively Kew Inexperienced had structured its operations – not solely when it comes to lodge administration, but additionally in areas like finance, human sources, and industrial help. These capabilities have been embedded regionally in a approach that stood other than the extra inflexible company constructions sometimes seen in Thailand.
This go to sparked the formation of SK Motels in Bangkok, with a transparent mission to convey the identical sort of streamlined, performance-driven working mannequin to the Siamese Asset lodge portfolio. In doing so, we’ve created a nimble, centralized help construction that has already confirmed efficient throughout a number of newly launched properties.
Since rising from the pandemic, SK Motels has opened six properties throughout Bangkok, together with the Wyndham Queen Conference Centre, Wyndham Backyard Sukhumvit 42, Ramada Plaza by Wyndham Sukhumvit 48, Ramada by Wyndham Sukhumvit 87, TRIBE Residing Bangkok Sukhumvit 39, and Cassia by Banyan Group in Rama 9. Every of those properties entered the market post-COVID and have responded properly to the resurgence in worldwide and home journey. Some properties hit the bottom operating with exceptionally sturdy efficiency, whereas others shortly discovered their footing, delivering optimistic outcomes all through 2023 and into 2024.
Wanting forward, our pipeline contains a number of high-profile openings. The Crowne Plaza Bangkok Rama 9 is scheduled to open quickly, adopted by Cassia by Banyan Group in Ram Intra, after which a Hilton Backyard Inn, additionally within the Ram Intra district. These upcoming launches mirror our ongoing confidence in Bangkok’s potential, however we’re additionally increasing our imaginative and prescient past the capital.
We’re at the moment in superior discussions on properties in main leisure locations resembling Hua Hin, Pattaya and Phuket, with promising leads rising in Koh Samui and Chiang Mai. The timing is true: our Bangkok-based properties have stabilized, and the centralized help infrastructure that we’ve got constructed throughout industrial, finance, HR, and IT now permits us to develop the portfolio with energy and agility.
With this stable basis in place, SK Motels is poised to proceed its growth throughout Thailand, bringing effectivity, innovation, and efficiency excellence to every new vacation spot.
TDM: We perceive innovation performs a key position in your operations, specifically on the subject of bettering property efficiency. Are you able to broaden on this?
Scott Walton: Innovation has change into a defining pillar of our operations. The speedy rise of AI post-COVID, alongside evolving visitor expectations and a extra advanced working setting, has pushed us to rethink how we work. Due to the forward-thinking nature of our three way partnership companions, we’ve embraced these adjustments head-on, however with warning and intent.
At SK we don’t implement AI to exchange human roles, we use it to amplify efficiency. For instance, when revising our menus at TRIBE Residing – a course of that sometimes entails weeks of costing, sourcing, and coordination – we used AI instruments to streamline procurement knowledge, automate value comparisons, and velocity up documentation. This allowed our cooks to focus totally on culinary creativity and innovation, bettering the visitor expertise fairly than being slowed down in admin.
Our innovation can be deeply supported by Siamese Know-how, an inside division of Siamese Asset centered on enhancing visitor expertise via environmental design and development expertise. They’ve pioneered developments in air high quality management, acoustic insulation between rooms and corridors, and energy-saving strategies all of which contribute to extra sustainable, snug visitor environments. This partnership has helped a number of of the properties developed by Siamese Asset and managed by SK to earn EDGE certification, a globally acknowledged ESG commonplace originating from Singapore.
These improvements not solely scale back working prices but additionally be certain that we are able to meet or exceed model and sustainability requirements with confidence and consistency.
TDM: With meals & beverage and wellness additionally being cornerstones of your growth technique, what can company count on from SK Motels properties in these areas?
Scott Walton: Meals and beverage are on the coronary heart of each property we open. Our technique begins by contemplating the native market and what components can be found, what the neighborhood craves, and the place we are able to break from the anticipated. We take inspiration from international developments whereas all the time remaining regionally related.
This imaginative and prescient is championed by Siamese Asset’s possession, who constantly encourage us to problem the norm. We experiment with new ideas, components, and working fashions to stay forward of evolving shopper expectations. Whether or not it’s via centralized manufacturing kitchens that enhance consistency and effectivity, or by embracing the “Instagrammable” pattern to attraction to the visual-first buyer, our method is grounded in a ardour for reinvention.
I’m a agency believer that consistency, nevertheless, is simply as necessary as innovation. One of many earliest classes I discovered in hospitality, working in Auckland’s restaurant scene, was that if one thing works, make it constant. If it doesn’t, change shortly. We apply this precept at each property, making certain that strong-performing gadgets or providers are refined and delivered flawlessly, whereas underperforming ideas are reimagined.
Wellness is a key element of our growth technique and continues to develop in significance as fashionable vacationers place larger emphasis on stability, mindfulness, and self-care. At SK Motels, we method wellness as an integral a part of the visitor expertise and as one thing that ought to really feel purposeful, accessible, and woven into the very material of every property.
To ship on this imaginative and prescient, our properties have partnered with Pravinia Wellness and Magnificence Middle, Sense Cera Spa, and Yumoto, bringing a various vary of wellness experiences to our motels. These partnerships permit us to tailor every providing to the distinctive character of the vacation spot, whereas nonetheless reflecting international developments in holistic wellbeing. For native residents, our wellness centres present an city sanctuary, a spot to unwind and rejuvenate near house. For worldwide vacationers, they provide a welcome second of calm amid a busy itinerary, with remedies starting from conventional therapies to fashionable spa rituals and health options.
Every house is designed with intention, permitting company to both reconnect with themselves via restorative practices or to fully disconnect from the stresses of on a regular basis life. We acknowledge that wellness immediately means various things to completely different folks, and we intention to fulfill these wants in methods which might be considerate, regionally related, and constantly uplifting.
Alongside wellness, we’re additionally responding to a rising demand for versatile, purposeful workspaces as extra company search to mix enterprise and leisure of their journey routines. Our motels are being thoughtfully tailored to help this hybrid way of life, with communal areas reimagined as fashionable, productive environments that help work with out sacrificing consolation or hospitality.
By partnerships with coworking platforms resembling Reef Rocks, an app that connects distant staff with welcoming areas, we’ve reworked our lobbies and lounges into vibrant, related work hubs. These areas are geared up with dependable high-speed web, ergonomic furnishings, accessible charging factors, and ambient design that encourages company to remain so long as they want.
This evolution not solely enhances the visitor expertise but additionally permits us to activate areas which might be historically underutilized throughout sure elements of the day. By creating environments the place company and locals alike can work, meet, and loosen up, we’re constructing motels that stay related in a world the place work not suits a nine-to-five mannequin. Extra than simply locations to remain, our properties have gotten dynamic, multifunctional areas that help how folks reside, work, and join each on the highway and near house.
TDM: Inform us concerning the Thailand centre of studying, monetary providers, recruitment, income, digital spine and operations help that SK Motels has established?
Scott Walton: Once we launched SK Motels within the aftermath of COVID, we have been met with the identical challenges going through the worldwide hospitality trade. Chief amongst these was a dramatic lack of expertise. Many expert professionals had left the sector altogether, some beginning small companies, others returning to their hometowns or pursuing new industries totally. To rebuild, we knew we needed to take a recent method, not simply to recruitment however to the long-term growth of our folks and the methods that help them.
The institution of a decentralized Centre for Studying marked a turning level. Relatively than chase the identical restricted pool of expertise, we selected to spend money on people who might not have beforehand thought-about hospitality. Faculty leavers, latest graduates, and profession switchers have been introduced into the enterprise and given the construction, mentoring, and help wanted to succeed. In simply three years, many of those people have change into integral to our operations and are already progressing into management roles.
In parallel, our method to recruitment has continued to evolve. With conventional channels yielding diminishing returns, we’re at the moment constructing an intuitive, user-friendly careers platform inside our web site. This new system will make it simpler for candidates to discover alternatives, perceive our tradition, and apply primarily based on potential fairly than simply prior expertise. We’re in search of mindset and angle people who find themselves hungry to develop inside a fast-paced, agile setting.
Alongside expertise growth, we’ve constructed a monetary providers platform that goes past the usual GOP focus typical of lodge administration corporations. Our finance workforce operates with a transparent mandate: to prioritize investor returns and long-term worth. That is achieved via sturdy inside controls, audit-centric reporting, and streamlined processes designed for transparency and accountability. Our finance management, beneath Ms. Rapeepan Banyen (Khun Jay), has embedded a tradition of fiscal self-discipline whereas enabling operational flexibility. It’s this stability that provides our buyers confidence and our lodge groups readability.
Within the space of income technique, we’ve taken a hybrid method. Every of our motels is provided with instruments resembling IDeaS and Avalon, giving them dynamic pricing and forecasting capabilities tailor-made to their particular markets. These instruments are additional enhanced by the legacy information and methods introduced in from Kew Inexperienced Motels, whose affect has helped form our industrial route and method to demand optimization. Supported by a centralized industrial workforce beneath Mrs. Tassanee Mangkala-apinun (Khun Pait), this hybrid mannequin permits every lodge to reply regionally whereas being backed by broader market intelligence and strategic oversight.
Our digital and advertising perform has additionally change into an important progress engine. By a mixture of structured digital technique and untapped artistic expertise – a few of whom we jokingly name “diamonds within the tough” – our advertising division has developed sturdy, narrative-led campaigns for every property. These should not generic lodge adverts, however model tales that resonate with their goal audiences, crafted via the good use of AI, viewers analytics, and localized storytelling. The work has helped our properties stand out in a crowded digital market and has pushed measurable will increase in consciousness, conversion, and direct bookings.
Lastly, our IT infrastructure has been a foundational pillar from day one. The IT division has carried out sturdy methods throughout all properties, making certain not solely performance however scalability as we develop. Each lodge beneath SK Motels is provided with standardized {hardware} and software program from PMS and back-office methods to firewalls and IPTV options making certain operational effectivity and knowledge safety. The IT workforce additionally performs a proactive position in property help, rolling out centralized updates, troubleshooting points remotely, and sustaining the cyber integrity of each guest-facing and inside platforms.
These departments – Studying, Finance, Income, Digital, and IT – should not working in silos. They’re built-in and aligned to help SK Motels’ mission: to function effectively, innovate responsibly, and empower our folks to create distinctive visitor experiences. It’s a construction that places folks first, however does so on a spine of course of and precision, making certain that as we develop, we accomplish that sustainably and with confidence.
TDM: Clarify to us the position that expertise is taking within the ongoing progress of SK Motels’ main proprietor Siamese Asset’s portfolio?
Scott Walton: Know-how sits on the core of SK Motels’ progress and is deeply built-in into each Kew Inexperienced and Siamese Asset’s broader technique. From the outset, I used to be impressed by the entrepreneurial spirit of Siamese Asset’s management, particularly their early embrace of good constructing applied sciences, AI, and sustainable development strategies. Likewise with Kew Inexperienced’s ever evolving distribution, analytics and visitor satisfaction initiatives – a mixture that’s uncommon within the trade.
One standout instance of our dedication to expertise and wellbeing is the deployment of Siamese Air of Life, a proprietary air filtration system now put in in all visitor rooms throughout our new properties. This technique has confirmed particularly useful throughout the annual burn-off season, when air high quality in Bangkok and surrounding areas can deteriorate considerably. Visitors are in a position to monitor each indoor and outside air high quality in actual time via a devoted app, whereas every room additionally includes a reside show of present air high quality readings. This stage of transparency and environmental management has not solely reassured company, however has additionally change into a compelling differentiator for our model companions and ESG-focused buyers. It speaks to our dedication to visitor consolation, operational innovation, and sustainability in equal measure.
TDM: What thrilling issues can we count on from SK Motels sooner or later?
We’re getting into an thrilling new section of progress. Along with increasing our city footprint, we’re exploring alternatives in additional distant locations throughout Thailand. In some circumstances, these properties might require sturdy model partnerships; in others, the vacation spot itself is perhaps the draw, permitting us to launch distinctive, impartial lodge ideas.
We’re additionally persevering with to develop strategic partnerships just like the one we’ve got with Siamese Asset. These alliances permit us to leverage our shared infrastructure – centralized finance, HR, IT, and industrial experience – lowering prices and bettering efficiency on the property stage. Not like extra inflexible company constructions, our management works contained in the motels, for the motels. This ends in quicker decision-making, stronger workforce help, and in the end, higher visitor experiences.
On the coronary heart of our philosophy is a straightforward however highly effective mission: to function motels with a relentless deal with effectivity and excellence, empowering our folks to create distinctive visitor experiences. We emphasize transparency, sustainable progress, and partnerships grounded in operational brilliance.
Above all, we consider in widespread sense. It’s a worth that always will get misplaced in over-complicated enterprise processes however one which constantly solves issues, enhances experiences, and strengthens relationships with company, stakeholders, and our groups alike.
I’d prefer to share a latest instance that highlights the sort of sensible intelligence and calm management we worth throughout our groups. It befell throughout the speedy aftermath of the March 28, 2025 Myanmar earthquake, a day of widespread disruption, uncertainty, and logistical chaos throughout Bangkok.
Amid the aftermath, certainly one of our engineering workforce members seen uncommon foot site visitors close to a little-used emergency exit that led right into a service hall, an space sometimes quiet and safe. Regardless of the calls for of the day and the overwhelming distractions going through each division, they selected to behave on intuition. They flagged the priority to administration, reviewed the CCTV footage, and found that an unauthorized third-party vendor had been utilizing the house to maneuver items with out supervision or correct clearance.
Whereas it might have been straightforward to miss or deprioritize given the broader disaster at hand, the workforce dealt with it discreetly and decisively. Entry controls have been instantly strengthened, distributors have been re-briefed, and the breach was resolved with out disruption to company or compromise to the property.
What stands out on this state of affairs is the usage of situational consciousness, widespread sense, and initiative, within the chaos of a real-world disaster. These are precisely the qualities we nurture at SK Motels: a tradition the place workforce members are empowered to behave, to assume past checklists, and to guard each our company and our model status within the moments that matter most.
As we develop, this core perception in sensible intelligence and human connection will proceed to information each choice we make. At SK Motels, the long run isn’t nearly growth it’s about evolving well, sustainably, and with goal.
The publish SK Motels’ Scott Walton talks new motels and locations developing in Thailand, innovation and expertise appeared first on Journey Every day Media.