Introduction and Overview

The Aman Resort Internation (ARI) is a hospitality organization headquartered in Singapore. The luxury organization has 33 different destinations in 21 nations. Founded in 1988, ARI has successfully achieved goals and objective through its key people: Vladislav Doronin (organization’s owner and CEO), Roland Fasel (COO). The distribution of rooms and staff per guest is standardized. There are typically small numbers (less than 60) of rooms whereby four members of staff manages a single guest. In Aman Resort, there are no lobbies, reception desks or bellboys. The accommodation of guests is typically issued through individual and private villas, tents and pavilions (for instance: the Aman-i-Khas located in India). The hospitality organization is obliged to maintain cultural values in the community. For the case of Cambodia, the resort acquired a ruined villa which was constructed in the 19^th century by King Sihanouk. Despite the fact that all architectural works of villa had been destroyed, there was a discovery of a tourist book that had pictures of the building which enabled the ARI to replicate what had been forgotten.

Since the establishment of the Aman resort, the company has been rated high by Conde Nast Traveler, Harper’s Hideaway, Leisure & Travel, Gallivanter’s guide and Zagat survey. Approximately 34% of ARI’s patrons originate from Asia-pacific region while another 34% are from Europe. 28% of the organizational patrons come from America whereas the remaining 4% are from the rest of the world (Tan & Bogomolova, 2015). The company is globally acclaimed as an exclusive hotel brand that offer a wide range of hospitality services. ARI is designed to incorporate its natural setting and famous for its numerous destinations, ultimate privacy and architecture. Tourists and visitors are welcomed in a manner to instill a sense of belonging and peace through its historical and natural landscapes. This approach continues to seek more transformational customer experience through a well-established service provision in different destinations around the world.

The target segment of Aman Resort International is a premium consumer market. There are clients that are rich and capable of paying $2500 for 3-4 nights in the demographic location of Aman’s resort. This form of audience that seeks to get a customized life experience from hospitality organization is majorly interested in posh things in life, businesses and relationships. Moreover, Aman’s customers are individuals who desire to receive excellent services that are worth the pay there are willing to submit. The company also targets high-spending market niches like; information and technology businesses, finance companies and aerospace industry.  ARI’s reach is global with sales offices in Singapore, India, France, United States, Cambodia, Morocco, Bhutan, Thailand, Philippines, Sri Lanka, china, Greece, Turkey, Vietnam, Dominican Republic, Turks and Caicos Islands and Italy.

ARI’s Business Positioning Strategy

A proper definition of Aman resort’s marketing mix is significant for the success of hospitality marketing aims. Aman utilizes market segments to indicate different variables of operation used by its sales team to target its customers. A market mix is developed by the director of marketing and sales to initiate the right service and facility for an organization. ARI’s market mix defines the need for a good promotional strategy (whether online or offline) and pricing plan (Rogers & Nielsen, 2017).

The Aman Resort International (ARI) is a global hospitality organization that deals in resorts and hotels. The luxury brand is subsidiary with its headquarters based in Singapore. Offering guest an exceptional and customized experience in the hospitality sector, the company faces stiff competition from;

• Ritz-Carlton: the company was founded in 1983 in Bethesda, Maryland. It competes with Aman in restaurant industry generating $5 billion more revenue compared to Aman.
• Themed Attraction Resorts & Hotels: this is a private company founded in 2015 in Selangor Darul Ehsan. The company has 136 more workers than Aman
• Naked Retreats: this is the biggest Aman’s rival foudeded in 2005 in Shanghai. The company is a travel agency with 195 fewer workers than Aman.

This aspect comes first because its enables the organization’s market team to deliver desired services to potential customers and guests. Services provided include: guest rooms, beverages and foods, banqueting facilities, conference rooms, recreational activities, health facilities, executive lounges, travel facilities, a business center, check-in and check-out services and parking facilities. Aman generally caters different segments of the market whereby every segment has unique requirements. For instance: a leisure visitor who comes on a family vacation expects to be served with recreational and wellness facilities while someone visiting the organization on a business mission expects to find travelling facilities in Aman. Having all the necessary facilities in place allow a resort to gain brand recognition across the world (Klassert & Möckel, 2013).

This segment refers to the accessibility of services to customers. Services offered by Aman resort are accessible when clients go to the organization but not delivered to customers from their homes. In that case, the location of Aman is strategic in resort area accessible by local tourist using road transport. Aman resort in Singapore leads the hospitality industry in the country in terms of recreational and environmental facilities. Services are distributed through a direct method of sale by sales teams and personal phone calls. ARI’s reach is global with sales offices in Singapore, India, France, United States, Cambodia, Morocco, Bhutan, Thailand, Philippines, Sri Lanka, china, Greece, Turkey, Vietnam, Dominican Republic, Turks and Caicos Islands and Italy.

To define the correct strategy of pricing for the Aman resort is an important segment of a marketing mix. When an organization provides products and facilities like guestrooms, foods and beverages that are not priced by considering its competitors then guests may be forced to reject service provide in a hospitability organization (Boatwright, Dhar & Rossi, 2004). In that case, Aman applies affordable guest-rooms rates that vary during the peak and valley/off seasons. During the peak season (when the demand of hotel services is highest; reaching $1200 per night) Aman can charge the highest price to guests visiting the facility (Klassert & Möckel, 2013). The ARI has no define peak season. However, seasons vary in difference hotel destinations. During the valley season (when there is a lower demand of guestrooms) the resort offers a reduced rate and package (for instance; staying for 3 nights and paying for only 2). Introducing discounted package and rate to help the organization achieve its target revenue despite a change in seasons (Milojevic, Damnjanovic & Milovanovic, 2015).

ARI’s Existing and Future Development Strategy

Directors of marketing and sales in an organization are obliged to provide effective means to communicate and promote services. Promotional activities are a way ARI uses to communicate with its potential customers. The brand utilizes its ‘word-of-mount’ campaign process (just as Ritz Carlton) to market its services over the last 10 years (Groeger & Buttle, 2016). Aman does not send press releases to consumers.

The Aman Resort International (ARI) remains to be the only iconic hospitality organization with no advertising plans from its initiation. Sticking to its underlying attitude of exclusivity, Aman’s CEO and COO decide to go against any kind of advertising campaigns from the foundation of the organization. Moreover, the company doesn’t send press releases to potential customers. However, the brand utilizes the strategy of ‘work-of-mouth’ to reach potential clients. 90 days before the foundation of every Aman’s resort, the organization engages in an activity to send postcards to over 120,000 recipients in the company’s vicinity. These postcards are designed to include a beautiful image of the location but without specifying the actual place (Cretu & Brodie, 2007).

This strategy is design to tease prospective consumers in advance prior to opening the destination. As a result, the step draws more attention about new ideas and design thinking that the organization will bring (Knippers, 2013). Moreover, the company’s executive invite a circle of friends to benefit and experience from the destination before it is fully available for use by tourists. This form of marketing spreads information quickly to the expected target audience which eventually reaches exclusive travel platforms like Andrew Harper’s Report and Conde Nast Traveler.

Right from Aman’s foundation, the organization has strived to become a typical commercial resort facility to gain a competitive advantage in the hospitality industry. The CEO’s aversion over corporation of the facility has enhanced an effective cultural heritage and atmosphere for a company’s destinations (Liu, 2017). Tasked with an obligation to provide excellent and affordable personalized services to local and international consumers, the company’s staffs are urged consistently to embrace innovation and creativity in different service sectors to enhance a memorable experience to all customers.

The value of Aman resort is generated through brand innovation. This concept is achieved through the COO who offers impeccable initiatives for choosing exotic locations for the organization. This step makes the company’s executives to be inventors of a recommendable concept of luxury and hideaway resorts. The success formula of Aman includes; minimalistic forms of architecture, less spoilt locations, local cuisines and provision of outstanding customer experience. This existing capability among marketing leaders has offered much adulation since the organization was founded. According to Marren (2007), strategy imitation is a greater form of flattery. The ideology of Aman resort has been adopted by many hospitality organizations like the Richard Branson Necker Island in development of its brands. Despite Aman’s effort to pioneer all ultra-niches of luxury hotels and segments, competition rate is increasing hence forcing the organization to seek new initiatives to catch up with new trends to create more value for its consumers (Chesbrough, Lettl & Ritter, 2018)

ARI’s Target Market

The ability of Aman’s marketing leaders to use unique promotional means as a final branding pillar has enabled the organization to establish a competitive advantage in the hospitality sector. With a high-profile of the company’s clientele, it is easier for the organization to capitalize its presence to celebrities to achieve a wide-scale media coverage and publicity in any global press. However, even with Aman’s refraining steps from social media marketing, the company stills establishes a strong brand image which is a threat to existing hospitality organizations (Laspiñas, 2013). ARI does not target the mass public but individuals who are capable of paying for premium prices to gain more luxury experience for a life-time. In that case, the organization maintains a policy of being exclusive which makes it to stand out from its competitors.

• Plenty of resources to invest in time and effort in training its leaders. Training programs helps Aman’s leadership team to apply marketing skills in real-life demography of its potential customers. Aman has all the resources to invest in technological research. When a digital team of expert is available, Aman’s employees will be able to learn how to apply technological means of promoting their products and services.
• Embracing a culture that is self-fulfilling to establish unique brand recognition. The resort’s architecture has a common significance of embracing the culture of the location it is situated. The action makes the company have a unique appearance from other local resorts.
• Skilled management team to align the organization’s staff with core activities of the organization. The COO and CEO of the company have trained the employees to serve clients in better to gain customer satisfaction.
• Effective strategy of word-of-mouth as a cultural practice to deliver its brand promises. The culture of promoting the resort’s culture is through the word-of-mouth. The company has enabled to increase sales by fulfilling the exact experience they promise to customers.
• Iconic brand recognition from loyal and potential consumers. The company is obliged to deliver promises externally by collaborating with the staff to apply traditional means of brand-building

• One dominant means of marketing. Aman is highly dependent on word-of-mouth strategy of promoting its services to its wealthy clienteles (Groeger & Buttle, 2016). This is because the organization’s executives have adhered to strict measures of terminating online marketing, printing, television advertisements and creation of marketing budgets.
• Inability to embrace new technological strategies to increase sales. The company, through its leaders, prefers using the word-of-mouth to using modern means of advertising the brand. This limits the company from reaching customers in other parts of the globe.

• The company can complement the word-of-mouth strategy with internet marketing, social media marketing and creation of television advertisements. Many people are using social media platforms today. So, using social media advertisement could be the best alternative for the company to market its brand.
• Providing press releases concerning new facilities to reach more potential customers both locally and internationally. Customers like being updated concerning new services and products provided by the company. This will be effective if Aman provided relevant information using press releases to update their customers.
• Involving researchers to analyze the current trend of the hospitality sector and suggest pro-active technological measures to market effectively (Cruz-Cunha, 2010). Researches can be a potential guide for the company to learn about the significance of using modern technology to market the brand. A digital team of experts will helps the employees to apply modern marketing methods to reach more customers.
• Establishing a social media presence. This a broad-reaching and cost-effective strategy that enables the company to deliver target and get service messages from its clients (Thackeray, Neiger & Hanson, 2007). Social media can be used as a marketing tool to announce pricing discounts and promotions during the ‘valley’ season. A part from that, a social media page can act as a contact point for clients and the brand’s management team to interact.

• The company faces a shortage of technical labor to enhance a sense of technological marketing strategy (Ryzhikova, 2014). Since the company considers the word-of-mouth as the core method of advertising, it is a challenge for the company to cope up with the rising pressure from hospitality organizations; like the Bunyan Tree, that embrace technological trends.
• Poor management of crisis and risk of high-rate of unemployment with could lead to loss of potential customers. When people don’t have jobs, they will be unable to experience luxury services offered by the company. As a result, Aman’s sales will decrease since it targets premium customers who are rich.

The Aman Resort Internation is unique in its own way of marketing and architecture. Currently, the organization is the most exclusive luxury facility in Singapore. The company is no signage and has inconspicuous entrance concerning its location.  With service rates reaching $1000 per night, the company targets the rich with explain why the marketing and promotional strategy still works in the 21^st century (Laspiñas, 2013).

In conclusion, Aman’s positioning strategy is aimed at creating an awareness of potential customer base to enhance global competition in the hospitality industry. To maintain its elite service status, the company should utilize market-leading initiative. In case of a turbulent ownership challenge, the company will be left with no option than to focus on brand innovation as a second strategy (McKechnie, Grant & Katsioloudes, 2008). However, according to Guo, Su & Zhang (2017), this might have detrimental effect to the company’s position in the market.

The Aman Resort International was founded by Adrian Zech toward a strong initiative of corporatization of resort sector and hotel. The first destination of the company was established in Thailand in 1987 and was formally known as Amanpuri. Based on its philosophy during foundation, the company had fewer rooms that did not exceed 50 in number against 400 rooms in the entire resort presently. In reference to its past state, a substantial growth has been noticed to provide a world-class hospitality service that is personalized for every tourist. In that case, ARI runs the highest yield per guest room in the entire hospitality industry. 

The strategy to use a cultural infrastructure and word-of-mount promotion campaign has been successful that has enabled the company to gain a competitive advantage over its rivals (Cho, 2012). This initiation has been spread over different Aman’s destinations in Indonesia, France, Thailand, Morocco, Cambodia, USA, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, India, Philippines with many other destinations in pipeline. Establishing a strategic location is a key factor that should be considered by leaders of a hospitality organization. The founder of an establishment should be a good locator of a hospitality company that will bring long-term benefit to the company in the future (Kumaraswamy, Garud & Ansari, 2018). Many locations of the facility are in old families who prefer not to sell their heritage and cultural infrastructure. In that case, when Aman expects to globalize, these heritages will be used as resources to construct a resort that incorporate the traditions of the site.

ARI’s Marketing Mix

The leader of this cultural idea has gained an exclusive reputation to bring luxury services to potential customers using their existing culture. The growth strategy of using cultural heritage to build brand awareness has been an attitude for the company to offer a unique experience to customers (McKechnie, Grant & Katsioloudes, 2008). The organization’s executives have been trained to be the best performing managers of a hospitality service provider. Although there is no published manual on a standard procedure of operation, managers and employees at Aman are trained to run the business like their own. This unique working routine has been incorporated by the company as a culture to enhance its delight to serving high-paying tourists from the foundation of the organization.

When the founder of the company began the Amanpuri with approximately 40 rooms, the initiative was evident and relevant to target premium consumers and the segment of pop singers, sports stars, Hollywood artists and other wealth business individuals. With a limited number of guest room, expensive hospitality facilities were provided to potential customers. This action justified the company’s target audience from the foundation of the organization. The growth rate of the company was boosted through a provision of ultra-premium and personalized services that attributed to the company’s word-of-mouth strategy (Racherla & Hu, 2008). The organization also maintained a ratio of 6:1 (representing the number of employees in guestrooms) which has not been heard from other resort and hotel industries.  Embracing a high commitment of delivering the company’s promises, the luxury brand has established a high loyal consumer base that makes potential clients to return to the resort to experience more of its luxury offers. Commonly referred to as ‘Aman Junkies’, returning customers have helped to build the brand awareness of the company through referring of friends and family members regardless of the brand’s location (“Journal of Family Business Strategy: 2013 Call for Papers”, 2013).

The nest aspect of growth strategy is the provision of a holistic vocational experience that is given by blending customers’ comfort level and personalized luxury services with heritage and cultural values of the demographic location of Aman. The unique value of heritage and culture has been incorporated by potential customers who learn a lot as a result to their visit to the facility. Moreover, the company offers specialized visits to the surrounding location of the facility to help tourist to gain full understanding of cultural and educational values through interaction of local settlers. This strategy also allows visitors to embrace a unique vocational tour around the company.

ARI’s Promotional Campaigns

Before the foundation of Aman in Singapore, the CEO spent approximately six months to explore the neighborhood. As a result, the explorer discovered the relevance of culture and how it can be incorporated in the brand’s infrastructure. This action of cultural incorporation and positioning of the company has been used in all Aman’s resorts and hotels. Moreover, the organization also provides local cuisines that are prepared by local cooks using fresh ingredients. This strategy (ignoring fancy foods and cooking local means) has helped to build the cultural authenticity of different places where the company has been established. Home-cooked means also invite potential customers from other cultural backgrounds to experience the state of means provided in the local community.

The Aman Resort Internation (ARI) has emerged to be an iconic luxury company both in Australia and globally. Apart from its supportive and pro-active top management staff, the company has a marketing team that is dedicated to align the company’s corporate mission and vision using branding programs and strategies. The heads of the company are trained to run the company as their own which keep the company non-institutional in its operation. Considering a corporate strategy to enhance the success of the brand, Aman is built upon related business using pillars. These pillars include:

• Provide potential customers with luxury-private homes that not just any hotel service
• Offering tourists a holistic vocational experience by combining their visitation with cultural and heritage values of the resort’s location
• Maintaining a high degree of exclusivity different from its competitors

Right from its foundation, the company has inception, the company its main ambition to be far more than a typical commercial luxury company. The company’s leadership team has averted toward corporatization of the luxury facility has enabled the organization to provide excellent vocational services that are personalized for the interest of potential and premium customers. With this action in mind, the brand’s staff is constantly being trained to be creative and innovative in service provision to make any contact with potential clients a memorable visiting experience to the facility (Lehner & Haas, 2011).

• Making use of technology to market the brand: despite the fact that the company is gaining a global recognition through its tradition mode of advertising (word-of-mouth), it might be difficult for the company to cope up with technological trends valued by potential clients (Köseoglu, Topaloglu, Parnell & Lester, 2013). The brand’s iconic status both in Singapore and the entire world has regarded the company to be ‘a die-hard’ victim of tradition. The company should research on technological trends of the hospitality sector to be able to sustain a unique culture and its commitment to providing Aman’s promise without a detailed manual and management practice (Hermosilla, 2015).
• Transition of leadership: the operation and leadership of the company to succeed from an ageing founder born in 1933 (Adrian Zecha) to another person is a challenge for luxury organization. A new leadership team that conforms to new technological challenges and trends surrounding the hospitality sector is apt to providing an upmarket and more personalized luxury experience for Aman. The need to change is evident since the world is changing and many management problems can be mitigated using up-to-date technology instead of traditional means (Köseoglu, Topaloglu, Parnell & Lester, 2013). The recommendable management team should be obliged to use internet marketing, social media marketing and television advertising among other means to enhance brand awareness.

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