How does one company market a luxury brand that extends to both a hotel brand and a cruise line? We asked the man who heads up both Regent Hotels & Resorts and Regent Seven Seas Cruises how it’s done.

Bjorn Gullaksen was recently named president of Regent Luxury Group, which operates both the hotel company and cruise line. The Regent brand is owned by Carlson Companies, the diversified travel giant. While the cruise line was recently sold to an investor, Regent Luxury Group will continue to operate it.  We spoke to Gullaksen at Carlson’s recent Global Business Conference in Las Vegas, He discussed how he plans to leverage the dual-branding, the rejuvenation of the Regent brand and expansion plans for the hotels.

“Has the Regent brand had a difficult beginning under Carlson?” asked Gullaksen rhetorically. “Absolutely; but today with the brand 100% owned by Carlson – and with 9 Regent hotels owned outright by the company, we will be able to fulfill our vision.” (Carlson bought the Regent brand from Four Seasons more than a decade ago and Four Seasons continues to manage several properties.)     

• ”While the hotels and ships are operated separately" said Gullaksen, he added, “We do have a common guest/passenger and we will find ways to market to that person. We will do advertising that separates hotel and cruise – and advertising that covers both when appropriate.”
• Regent was once the brand in luxury hotels, founded by a legendary hotelier in Asia named Robert Burns. Gullaksen will seek to bring back that glory by re-invoking the Tao of Regent which places the highest priority on giving service. “We have a true luxury name and legacy, “says Gullaksen; “and the hotels we have today and which will be opening are truly luxury properties. Rather than simply having branding messages that we are the best we need to walk the walk.”
• Luxury should not target a specific demographic. “When we do a presentation,” says Gullaksen, “we are careful to show diversity in age and other factors; we don’t target the boomers alone, though we do have to figure out ways make rooms easy to deal with for older people.”
• The main message for Regent, says Gullaksen, is, “We will be a hotel group for all the senses; the entire stay has to be relevant for the guests. While we will have a broad message and we want coordination for all hotels, we won’t show the same picture in an ad for Turks & Caicos and Beijing.”
• Regent will be opening properties in Boston, Bangkok and Phuket, Thailand, Manila, Dubrovnik, the Maldives and Abu Dhabi, in the next couple of years.