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Anna Healy Fenton

The boutique apartments of domicile-themed Jia have been one woman's all-consuming passion for the past two years

In just two years, Yenn Wong Pui-yain has launched her own hotel from scratch, trained the staff and is showing an operating profit after just six months.

All this at the age of 25 - with no experience in the hospitality business.

It helped that her father, semi-retired Singaporean businessman Danny Wong Kiam-seng, put up the $120 million to buy the scruffy 25-storey residential property  on Irving Street, Causeway Bay.

'He just said go do it, sort it out yourself. So this is my baby,' said Ms Wong. 'My father is a self-made man and firmly believes in letting me learn from my own mistakes.'

Having bought the rundown 15-year-old building in what she described as 'this crazily busy part of Causeway Bay', she set out to create an oasis of calm.

She teamed up with John Hitchcox, the business partner of  eccentric French design guru Philippe Starck,   to create Jia, meaning 'home' in Mandarin, the first boutique hotel-style apartments in Asia.

'Home from home' and 'style with substance' were the twin goals. This was a big challenge for a novice because the designers appeared only periodically, pontificated and went off again.

She soon understood the frustrations of working across time zones and trying to order Italian marble and French furnishings during the sacred European summer holiday months.

Staffing was the next headache. 'It was so hard to find the right people, I must have done a million interviews,' she sighed. Getting them to understand the boutique hotel concept was the hurdle.

'There are so many big hotels in Hong Kong and no shortage of staff but it's become mechanical, ten-step training.' The problem was getting local staff to understand they were the hosts and guests were their welcome friends, she said, adding many would do only what was in their job description and no more.

'Their attitude is often, 'If I don't do something, then I won't make a mistake'.'

Finally she got her 20 staff. Although several do not have a  hospitality background: 'They understand what we are doing here.'

As a result, she explained, even if Jia does not offer impeccable service, guests can expect a caring, sincere attitude, which parents with babies particularly appreciate. 'Hong Kong hotels are not that child friendly, so that's a big area of differentiation for us,' she said.

And if the guest feedback is anything to go by, the personal touch works. 'People leave huge tips and write thank-you letters to the staff. Sure, we're not like a five-star hotel, but it's about the feeling people get when they are here.'

What made her think she could  succeed at the four- to five-star level in a city saturated with  competitors?

'I travelled a lot with my father and I knew what I wanted from a hotel, from a frequent traveller's perspective,' she said. A big hotel may be excellent but it was always a hotel, she added.

She fears many have become star-obsessed Goliaths with excessive service. 'You can see what I mean in the movie Lost in Translation - when the man walks into the lobby and everyone greets him.

'It's 'Whatever I do, everyone knows my name,' that can be overwhelming and annoying,' she said. With Jia, there are no stars, it's just back to the basics of providing good accommodation.

That begins with comfort and appropriate service. Jia has 20 staff for its 57 suites and rooms but provides only buffet breakfast. More staff will be needed when two hotel restaurants open next year. 'We don't overstaff, you won't walk into the lobby and find people milling about,' said Ms Wong.

Access to the hotel is secure, restricted to keycard holders so the lobby is not an open thoroughfare. The general manager, Barry Polson, is as likely to take your bag as the front desk receptionist.

With self-catering facilities, 360-degree revolving flat-screen televisions, surround-sound systems and DVD  units in the rooms, guests rarely need to call housekeeping.

Ms Wong has strong feelings about hotels  that fleece guests with the phone bill.

She was shocked by a friend's experience at the Mercer Hotel  in New York last year, when a US$150 bill was presented for a five-minute IDD call to Hong Kong plus US$25 was demanded  for each of two local calls,   neither of which even connected.

Local calls at Jia were free, as was broadband access, and the IDD charges were very reasonable, she said. 'Limited access to the internet in a hotel is very stressful. Why not have it on all the time and feel comfortable?'

So far, marketing has not been necessary, guests have  been attracted by word of mouth and press publicity. Of course, the 'designed by Philippe Starck' label had helped, she conceded.

This month she will hook up to a travel agent sales network but occupancy is already running at a steady 70 per cent.

Guests range from businessmen to  families with children,  even  fashion models. 'Only the very famous ones, otherwise they couldn't afford it,' said Ms Wong. Rack rates are in the four- to five-star bracket.

Jia's unique selling point, she believes, is the experience it offers. 'It's an intangible feeling rather than 10 people chasing after you to serve you. It's a home in this crazy place where you can be yourself.'

Her father is happy. She's in operating profit already and, having paid $120m in 2001 and spent $60m on renovations, the building was valued  in March at $300 million for the property alone.

She thinks her own inexperience has been a big plus. 'I don't have a big ego, so I ask questions and learn from everyone.'



'Home' is where the heart is