Aston to make Jakarta its HQ for SE Asia

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Aston International, which manages a series of hotels, resorts and residences in Indonesia, plans to make Jakarta its headquarters for its future Southeast Asian operations.

Andre Tatibouet, founder and chairman of Aston International, said Monday that the company's success in Indonesia convinced him that the country could serve as a springboard for its expansion into Southeast Asia.

"I want to be headquartered in a country where I like the people. I really like Indonesians -- they are friendly and warm. Secondly, Indonesia is at the beginning of rapid economic growth, and I want to participate in it," Tatibouet said.

Arriving in Indonesia just before the 1990s economic crisis, Aston currently manages 12 hotel, serviced-apartment, condominium-hotel (condotel) and villa developments in Indonesia, with 13 more due to open in the next two years, when Aston will become the second largest hotel operator in the country, behind the Accor group.

With its success in Indonesia, Tatibouet said Aston is now eyeing Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines.

In Singapore, Tatibouet explained, Aston was looking at the business-hotel segment, as Singapore was the leading business center in the region, while in Malaysia, the company was looking at a mixture of properties, including both resort and commercial developments.

"I'm excited right now about Southeast Asia, There are so many opportunities here," he said.

Together with his parents, Tatibouet started Aston's first hotel in Waikiki, Hawaii, in 1948. Aston, then known as Hotel Corporation of the Pacific, grew quickly to become a resort leader in Japanese-owned hotels and resorts in Hawaii, and expanded its operations into North America and Mexico.

In 1996, Aston entered the Indonesia market with the aim of making it its launching pad for Asia. But then, the crisis hit, but Aston stayed on.

"Aston International is a separate business. It reports to me directly as chairman, but it is separate from that in Hawaii," Tatibouet explained.

He said he had talked to a number of investors and bankers to possibly finance Aston International's expansion into Southeast Asia. He admitted he had also thought of floating the company on the Jakarta Stock Exchange.

"We will consider both, from the banking side and an initial public offering side. Not in the near future, but we have it on our list," he said.