Frasers Hospitality Pte Ltd (Frasers) will add 25 new properties and will manage a total of 64  properties across 37 cities by the end of 2012. The aggressive global expansion kicked off today with the opening of Fraser Residence Orchard.

“We are embarking on our most ambitious expansion phase,” says Mr Choe Peng Sum, Chief Executive Officer of Frasers. “Over the next 24 months we will add 4,300 serviced residences to our inventory.”

2011 will see Frasers open a dozen new properties worldwide including Jakarta, Indonesia; Suzhou and Chengdu in China; New Delhi, India; Doha, Qatar; Istanbul, Turkey and Budapest in Hungary. The momentum will pick up in 2012 when Frasers opens a further 13 properties.

More important than the physical expansion of properties and facilities, “our eyes are on maintaining and growing our services and service standards around the world. Emulating other great brands, notably Singapore Airlines, our goal is to grow aggressively but in a measured manner so that we can uphold the Gold-Standard services that Frasers is known for. Our guests, mainly executives from Fortune 500 companies, demand greater efficiency and convenience, and more relaxation choices after office hours,” he says. Frasers offers super-broadband Internet wherever available, Voice over Internet Protocol or VoIP communications, and even gourmet coffee machines in every serviced residence. Guests can also ask for customised services such as personal trainers, personal shoppers or chefs. Greater emphasis is also placed on staff training to ensure higher and consistent service levels worldwide.
 
The strong Frasers brand has resulted in 90 per cent occupancy across Frasers properties in Singapore. Even though Fraser Residence Orchard, its fourth property in Singapore, started operations only two months ago, it is enjoying 80 per cent occupancy. “Occupancy across all our properties worldwide is over 80 per cent, signalling a strong upswing for the extended stay market,” says Mr Choe.
 
“Asia, particularly China and India, has been the global economic engine over the past two years and will continue to drive growth as the world climbs out of the recession.” The International Monetary Fund, in its latest World Economic Outlook update of January 2011, has projected that while “advanced” economies would grow by 2.5 per cent in 2011 and 2012, India is forecast to grow by a robust 8.4 per cent in 2011 and 8.0 per cent in 2012; and China by an even more impressive 9.6 per cent in 2011 and 9.5 per cent in 2012.
 
“With our continued investments through the lean times of global economic slowdown, Frasers is well positioned to ride this wave, especially with our Modena and Frasers brands catering to upcoming road warriors up through the ranks to top-level executives.”
 
Fraser Residence Orchard
At the opening of Fraser Residence Orchard this evening, Mr Lee Hsien Yang, Chairman of Fraser and Neave, Limited, said: “It is a remarkable achievement that, in the space of 10 years, the Fraser brand has grown from 2 properties to 39 properties in 21 cities.”
 
At Mt Elizabeth Link, Fraser Residence Orchard sits at a prime locale, at the Orchard Road shopping belt and the prestigious Cairnhill residential area; adjacent to Paragon Shopping Centre and Mount Elizabeth Hospital. With 72 exclusive serviced residences ranging from one-bedroom to five-bedroom penthouses, Fraser Residence Orchard is designed as a sanctuary from the business bustle. It offers a quieter environment that is ideal for extended corporate stays. It was upgraded and refurbished at a cost of S$6.5 million to attain Frasers’ standards of comfort.