By Kim Tae-jong
Staff Reporter
Korean society seems to be too much obsessed with academic backgrounds with many people believing that success cannot be achieved without diplomas from established universities. This problem is often seen in scandals such as the recent diploma forgery case.
In this regard, the appointment of Ty Collins as the opening general manager of the Marriott Executive Apartments Yeouido Park Center Seoul, can be seen as strange. He has never undertaken any formal training in hotel management and he actually started as a breakfast waiter at a cafe in a hotel.
But there seems to be enough reasons that one of the biggest international hotel chains put the 34-year-old American in the challenging position at Seoul's new luxurious residence ― his experience from the bottom up and crisis management.
``Serving breakfast and orange juice, I worked at six in the morning and then I worked my way up,'' Collins said. ``What that means basically is that I worked my way up from the bottom, so hopefully I have a better idea of what our staff has to go through.''
He said he has great respect for those with high academic achievements in the hotel business but believes that he has learned many valuable lessons in the actual field dealing with difficult situations, such as the crisis when the Tsunami hit Phuket in 2004.
Despite the natural disaster, the two resort hotels in the Phuket where he worked won numerous awards including the Hotel of the Year 2005 for Marriott International and the Resort of the Year for 2002-2004 from Marriott Vacation Club International.
The 23-year-old breakfast waiter kept taking on more and more responsibility in various international hotels and now has taken the top position at the new serviced apartment.
It seems that his biggest challenge will be to promote the new residence. ``Right now, it's getting people to come and stay here with us. When people walk in, they are immediately interested,'' he said.
The residence has 103 studios, one, two and three-bedroom apartments, equipped with heated floors, rainfall showers, a gourmet restaurant and wine bar and a luxurious full-service spa as well as the latest gadgets such as a home entertainment systems with large LCD televisions in both living rooms and master bedrooms, he continued.
As the hotel is located in Yeouido, traditionally known as the financial and economic areas of Seoul, its location has more challenges in competition with other established hotels and residences in downtown Seoul. But Collins said the biggest advantage the hotel has is in fact its location.
``Location is the biggest advantage. It is near the airport and just 15 minutes from downtown. It has the Yeouido Park across the street. As a residence, it's very nice place to live,'' he said.
As there are numerous international companies here, they can attract more business-related guests and offer exclusive services when they want to have a more comfortable stay, Collins said.