Kim Ji-soo joined The Korea Times in 2006, and worked on such desks as culture and politics and is currently a member of the Editorial Board. Previous workplaces include The Korea Herald and the Korea JoongAng Daily.
New manager wants Seoul to fall in love with JW Marriott, again
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Matthew Cooper, new general manager of JW Marriott Seoul in Gangnam, poses with the Han River in the background. / Courtesy of JW Marriott Seoul
By Kim Ji-soo
By Kim Ji-soo
Opening any new hotel, even with the name Marriott behind you, is a challenge.
Matthew Cooper, 42, the new general manager of the JW Marriott Seoul, has officially opened two in India.
The Australian, who officially assumed his Seoul post on March 1, has already made new friends in South Korea, both Koreans and expats, in order to strengthen the hotel’s connection with the community.
He’s also graced the pages of a few local magazines. He shed 30 kilograms in the past five months before coming to Seoul, which allows him to boldly walk onto such fashion shoots.
“Seoul is a mix of cool and culture,” Cooper said in an interview with The Korea Times. “There is money; an undercurrent of culture; you get an art scene, K-pop and drama in Seoul. It’s like Bollywood, so culturally significant.”
Cooper, who spent nine years in India, said his strength is in positioning hotels.Thus with his mission in Seoul to re-position the iconic JW Marriott hotel in Gangnam, the traits of Seoul, and having two daughters who are a fan of Girls’ Generation helps.
“We’re in Gangnam. When you think of Seoul, you think of ‘Gangnam Style,’” Cooper said.
It’s an address that hotels would die for, he said. He said his colleagues in India were envious that he was going to Gangnam.
Yet, for some time, he believes the JW Marriott has been taken for granted.
“Now, I want the JW Marriott to be an exciting thought process,” he said, when asked the direction he wants to take.
A lover of art, design and fashion, he’s putting new emphasis on style throughout the hotel — from the flower arrangement in the lobby to the style of the associates.
“You should go look at the flowers in the lobby. It’s done in pink. The color pink conjures up images of Chanel suits or, I think, of Louis Vuitton bags, the Berkin Bag. The YSL pink. I love fashion, I love clothes,” Cooper said, who could count each of the five different Armani brands.
He believes the hotel’s strategic location couldn’t be a better place to start. The JW Marriott sits on the top of Shinsegae Department Store, which Cooper called the “largest luxury supermarket.” Coincidentally, the ownership of JW Marriott was acquired by Shinsegae in October 2012, allowing more opportunities for the hotel to collaborate with the luxury brands.
“I call them the three ‘uccis.’ You’ve got Pucci, Gucci and Fiorucci. Normally you see only one of them. Here, I see them all; the Pucci, Gucci and Fiorucci,” he said.
He envisions holding Louis Vuitton showcases in the lobby and dreassing associates on the front desk in Chanel.
“Sometime this year, I want to hold a ‘Seoul Luxury Week’ in the hotel, and invite people to come experience the highest fashion,” he said.
Having lived in India for a long time, Cooper champions the Hindi word “Jugaad.”
“It means ‘making the impossible possible,’” he said.
He also believes that the hotel’s success rests on the success of its host city, and he said he has already met with National Tourism Organization officials to tell them Korea should do a better job of selling itself. The bigger competition is in Beijing, Shanghai and Singapore. he said.
He added that sometimes a city should promote what it may think is embarrassing point about it.
“What I’ve noticed is that in Korea, it’s popular because it’s popular. There’s a culture to create icons, and I love that,” Cooper said. It’s different from the “tall poppy syndrome” of his native home town, he said, where everyone wants to become equal.
To get where he wants, he knows he has to inspire his staff.
“I want to be their big brother, a person they can talk to, not like their father, whom they might be embarrassed to talk to about problems,” he said, adding that he wants his staff to fall in love with the hotel again. The 21-year veteran hotelier knows that he needs the right combination of staff, customers and positioning of the hotel to make it more successful.
He said the hotel will also focus on meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions business. The year’s big international event that he is looking at is the 2014 Incheon Asian Games in September.
He’s already met with diplomatic corps in Seoul as part of an effort to lure delegates to the JW Marriott.
Cooper is not afraid to say he’s ambitious. And he said he wants to inspire the hotel’s young associates to move up the corporate ladder.
Asked what his key strength as a hotelier is, he said it is his ability to relate to people, connect with the community and play host.
“If I were to host you at my home, I would give you a glass of water, sit you in the lovely lounge, prepare fluffy towels and crisp linen sheets,” Cooper said.
“Why can’t we do that with hotels?”