Trendy hotel brand citizenM and Airbnb-inspired hotel set to open in Asia

SINGAPORE — Savvy travellers would have already heard of citizenM. The trendy hotel brand, which first opened in 2008 at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport, had reinvented the boutique hotel experience with its promise of “affordable luxury” by cutting out traditional elements such as reception counters, concierges and in-room mini bars in exchange for style at a lower price. Instead, what travellers got to enjoy were designer furniture in buzzy lobbies, 24-hour food from its canteenM, Sealy king-sized mattresses and cutting-edge technology in rooms for the price of approximately US$199(S$285) a night, such as in its most recent New York property in the middle of Times Square.

Next up for the chain, which has six other properties in Europe, is Asia: It will be opening in 2017 at Taipei’s Ximending district and Shanghai’s Hongqiao neighbourhood.

“We are very confident that there is a strong appeal from the Asian market as the market is already very savvy,” said Allan Yip, vice-president of marketing, distribution and brands at Artyzen Hospitality Group, which is bringing the brand to the region. “The reviews are extremely positive, especially on the brand’s design, style and innovative approach to hotels. Our plan has always been to open our first few hotels in key cities such as Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Singapore and Taipei, and this is working well for us.”

Yip did not confirm which of the two cities will be welcoming the unveiling of citizenM in Asia, but he said the hotels in Taipei and Shanghai will be similar to the ones in Europe and New York, albeit with “minor adaptations” such as localising the food and beverage offerings.

Besides citizenM, Artyzen will also be creating its own hospitality concept with Artyzen Habitat, which will open in Shanghai’s Hongqiao area as well in the upcoming Shanghai MixC integrated project. The new project promises to be a “disruptive innovation”, according to Artyzen president Robbert van der Maas.

The premise is inspired by the notion of sharing economy fuelled by the likes of Uber and Airbnb, a home-like environment for both short- and long-stay travellers where the rooms are designed around the living space, and service staff are non-intrusive, personable and seen more as a “host”.

“Behaviour is changing and is increasingly driven by technology and the Internet. We looked at a lot of trends and insights into how the travel market is evolving. There is a clear trend of travellers who are specifically looking for a more home-like, connected and casual environment. It is from this research that we developed Artyzen Habitat,” explained Yip.

Artyzen Habitat will see facilities such as a co-working office and dynamic public spaces, which will host events, talks and pop-up concepts that appeal to the target traveller’s professional and creative needs to form an eco-system for guests to dine, co-work, interact and relax in.

Although a citizenM and Artyzen Habitat in Singapore are not in the pipeline just yet, Yip is keen to bring both of these here. “Singapore is perfect for these two brands — it’s savvy and is a technological and creative centre with a very strong innovation backbone and thriving start-up culture,” he said. “It would be nice to see our brands in the city centre, entertainment and lifestyle areas, and possibly even in the tech parks.”