Joakim Persson

Happy Hour Asia met with Phuket hotelier Anders Dimblad, Area General Manager for Laguna Phuket, including Banyan Tree, Angsana Laguna Phuket, Cassia, Banyan Tree Veya, and Homm Suites Laguna (a new brand).

As an integrated resort area, Laguna Phuket comprises hotels, residences, shopping, recreation, and wellness facilities, including the original Banyan Tree resort. Located at the heart of the 5-kilometer-long Bang Tao beach in Phuket this serene and natural haven awaits – including, as indicated in its name, lagoons.

Among the activities available are bird watching, nature walks, and various water sports, all of which can be enjoyed in the lagoon adjacent to several resorts (if the sea conditions are unfavourable) including stand-up paddle boarding and kayaking.

Anders emphasizes the exclusivity and spaciousness of the Laguna area, with ample greenery, lagoons, and sea views, offering a wide array of experiences, including world-class spa treatments, all without the need to leave the resort.

And being home to the very first Banyan Tree resort exclusively with pool villas Anders says that Banyan Tree’s history is deeply rooted in this environment that makes up all of Laguna, developed by the brand’s founding owners 30+ years ago.

“We market all Banyan Trees as ‘A sanctuary for the senses,’ and we want our guests to feel that as they enter the hotel, even if they might be on business,” explains Anders.

As a young couple, the founders felt the essence of sitting underneath a banyan tree in Banyan Tree Bay, a small fishing village on Lamma Island in Hong Kong. And based on the sanctuary that they felt there they wanted to build their own sanctuary for the senses. And that’s how Banyan Tree came about,” relates the area GM.

“One of the beautiful aspects of Laguna is that we cater to all types of travellers. Cassia is ideal for couples looking for a base to explore, Angsana offers families a wide range of activities with over ‘101 Things to Do’, and Banyan Tree, with its private pool villas, focuses on intimacy and romance,” says the Swede.

Phuket hotelier Anders Dimblad: islander since 2022

As a seasoned hotelier with significant experience within the Banyan Tree Group, he arrived to Phuket in 2022, from his previous posting managing two properties in Kuala Lumpur. There, he had been in charge of Banyan Tree Kuala Lumpur, combined with Pavilion Hotel Kuala Lumpur (also described as an urban sanctuary).

He describes Banyan Tree Kuala Lumpur as a unique ‘urban resort’ with just 55 keys, bringing the essence of the Banyan Tree brand to a city environment.

“I think any Banyan Tree that we have represents what we call all of our Banyan Trees: ‘A sanctuary for the senses’. And it stands for what we want our guests to feel that they come into the hotel; they might be on business, but it’s not any 400-key property and queuing up for breakfast,” Anders comments on the brand differentiation, be it a resort or a city hotel.

“And each property – I think no matter where you are in the world – has its own unique character, and you’ve got to love your property. They sort of become like your children; even if you’re fortunate enough to start it from the ground up, or if you’re inheriting it as a custodian from someone else, you just look after it in the best way you can. You need to feel the property; you need to have that sense of connection with it. And you have to have that connection with your associates; understand what they believe in as well – in order to really enhance their capabilities. That will, in turn, of course – when they’re happy and they’re feeling a good positive vibe – reflect to our guests, who then feel that even more and just becomes a win-win.”

Coming to Phuket also sees him returning to Thailand for the first time since 2009, when he had a stint with Banyan Tree Bangkok

“I was back then transferred from a property we had in the Middle East to Banyan Tree Bangkok. And at that time my youngest daughter’s actually born. After that I had the opportunity to get transferred to the Seychelles, and that’s where I went. So now I’m back in Thailand for the first time since 2009 – exciting times!”

“After successfully positioning and opening of the two beautiful properties in Kuala Lumpur, I got the opportunity to take over and manage the hotels here in Laguna Phuket, including several flagship properties,” says Anders.

His task has included streamlining the operations of the Laguna brand properties, aiming for increased efficiency and enabling guests to experience in its entirety everything Laguna and the island offer.

“Every guest arrives with certain expectations, seeking value, a sense of place, wellness, and an overall experience. But it’s not only about being able to make sure that every guest’s set expectations are met, but we should try to surpass it!” he adds.

So to be competitive towards guests the area GM points out that they need to add value: “I think this is what guests need today; they don’t mind spending a certain amount of money from whatever their budget is for their holiday. We just want ensure that guests feel they get value, and not just for their money but also for their sense of place, of being, of wellness, and their overall experience. And that’s the great thing about Laguna: Whatever your budget is we have a property that’s for you, but you can still experience all properties regardless of this. Because what’s also exciting about all these properties is that regardless of where you stay as a guest in Laguna Phuket, you can dine, drink and play at any of the properties and charge it to your hotel. One of the benefits of having an integrated resort with cross-signing availability is to have that convenience right at your doorstep.”

“A ferry service amongst the lagoons takes the guests by boat to all of the different properties. And we also have a shuttle bus service that takes them around to the other hotels and within the whole compound of Laguna as well. We have a small shopping arcade as well, called Canal Village, where we have a number of tourist shops and a few standalone independent restaurants. And every Saturday evening they have a night market there.

“Next to Canal Village we also operate a standalone restaurant that we manage called Open Kitchen, connected to a farm we have in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand, which supplies lots of ingredients directly from Chiang Mai. And we also sell the produce, at affordable prices, to anybody who wants to come and purchase,” he continues.

Angsana property: an island within an island

Their largest property is Angsana Laguna Phuket Resort with 380 keys. Nestled amidst water and bordered by a pristine nature reserve to the north it boasts beautiful surroundings, lush gardens, one of Phuket’s largest freeform swimming pools, and direct beach access.

Here, Anders emphasizes that guests enjoy a view corridor of water, whether it’s the swimming pool, the ocean, or the lagoons. The resort is spacious, providing a sense of exclusivity and ample greenery.

They call it an ‘island within an island’ as this island-based resort is also situated on its own island, accessible by crossing the water. Some of its bars and restaurants underwent upgrades or renovations ahead of the 2023/2024 winter high season.

“We wanted to elevate the property, not only in terms of our already renowned high service level but also in terms of our physical infrastructure.”

Angsana serves not only its guests but also the approximately 1500 residents within Laguna, enhancing its reputation to attract diners from the surrounding area.

‘Xana Beach‘ beach club has been turned into the Laguna’s new beachfront bar, differing from other beach clubs typical for Phuket.

“I would describe it as an experiential beach environment. We have a beach bar and our Italian-Mediterranean restaurant Azura. For Angsana, with our guest mix, we aim to create a more relaxed experience. We will host full moon parties and DJ events, making it a more event-centric destination.”

“We also revamped our swim-up pool bar to give it a modern and refreshed feel.”

Angsana boasts three swimming pools; an 800-metre long free-form pool, snaking along the accommodation wings and under bridges, a swim-up pool bar (with refurbished and shaded dining and drinking area) and a beachfront lap pool next to Azura and Xana.

“We have a sustainable spa here as well, which uses fantastic ingredients and therapies. Not only using beach sand, but also the products are special. There’s a whole focus around health and wellness – something that Banyan Tree pushes forward with ‘Sensory for the senses’,” Anders points out an concludes: “Essentially, the various people coming here all have something to do, something that allows them to find their holiday state of mind, their paradise, with the kind of activities that we have. It’s all in safe environment as well, and we have a beautiful kids’ club where families can leave their children with us and go off and enjoy themselves, knowing that their kids are well looked after and actually engaging in artwork, arts, crafts, baking etc.”

Phuket hotelier Anders Dimblad on turning guests’ dreams into reality

Laguna Phuket reputation is well-established, where the many returning guests are a testament to the integrated resort’s popularity and dedication to providing a memorable experience.

“We are fortunate for that, and it’s not something that happened overnight, but through the hard work and dedication of our teams and the philosophy behind each brand pillar. We must continue to turn guests’ dreams and expectations into reality,” says Anders.

“It’s a wonderful feeling when guests love the property so much that they return, and you become the steward entrusted with managing it well to preserve their cherished memories and help them create new ones. Welcoming guests back home to this paradise is key to our future.”

And managing this whole area (supported by hotel managers for each property) – to deliver on that – does not make Anders management style that much different: “I’ve always been a very firm believer in that I don’t know everything and I’m not afraid to ask questions or to say that I don’t know when I get asked questions. But I never leave it at that. Go and find out! And you always have to walk your properties and be visible. And you need to have that faith and trust in your colleagues that you need to make them feel comfortable and unafraid to take their own decisions, because you can’t be everywhere and you can’t be all things to everyone.”

The main challenging thing, post-Covid 19, has been staff recruitment and retention. “Since I arrived in 2022 recruitment has been a very big challenge here in Thailand, just as in many other places. Unfortunately a lot of people left the industry, whether by choice or not and they all started new jobs, new positions. So the challenge we’ve had for the service industry was that there were many of starts-stops during the process of re-opening of countries and properties. So people were very reluctant to go back into the service industry, even though we needed it because people were in this sort of revenge tourism mode. We were not geared up for the sudden influx of guests that we got, so we had to build things up along that. Then a second challenge followed, because it was almost like doing a pre-opening all over again, gearing up for mass recruitment. But there was a much more limited or smaller pool of people to recruit who had the experience. So you were forced to widen your search and bring in a lot of people who would be on their first time jobs or first time experiences. And when you have associates who are new and haven’t experienced work situations before, they are always afraid of things they don’t know. That’s a natural thing. So for us it meant looking at our trainings and prioritise to the get basics right first so that the associates feel confident. And then we continue with the next five steps and so on, and build it slowly to get back to a level where we are offering consistent service and with expected foreign language capacity as well.”

“But retention of talent is always the biggest challenge in any industry. And the world is getting smaller and there are more and more hotels being opened up, especially post-Covid, due to a lot of properties having been postponed or forced to stop are now coming online. People are expanding their horizon, so there’s always going be that constant movement of talented people.”

“And for me, I think one of the advantages that we have as the Banyan Tree group is that we are also in that similar situation where we’re growing very rapidly, but we’re now growing from a talent pool (unlike the bigger brands’ hundreds of thousands of people), of around ten to fifteen people. So, there’s a lot more opportunity for our associates to grow and develop within this group. And I can say I’m living proof of it: I joined the group as a room division manager and here I am now as an area general manager, having moved all around the world with the company! And it’s about grabbing the opportunities when they are given to you and not wait for things to fall on your lap! I always tell the employees: ‘You need to tell us what you aim to achieve. And we need to support you to get to that role.’ And the individual must tell the employer: ‘Where do I need to go or what do I need to get there?’ Whichever facet they have, we need to make sure that we’re there to support them. And we also offer a lot of online courses that I encourage associates to study whenever they have time, instead of playing computer games or watching movies. ‘Take that extra half an hour to do something online.’ And we’re open to any associate studying anything they want! So a sales person can learn cooking if she/he so wishes! I think it’s great to hear from your associates about what they need and what they want to try – to retain them within the group,” ends the Laguna Phuket area general manager.