Maldives Uncovered: The Sunny Side Podcast
This podcast is all about the Maldives as a tourism destination. You'll hear insights from top industry leaders and experts. Join our community to get inspired and gain the knowledge you need to reach your business or personal goals.
Maldives Uncovered: The Sunny Side Podcast
Luxury Tourism and Revenue Management with Ashfaq Ashique
The latest episode features Ashfaq Ashique, an experienced Revenue, E-commerce and Distribution Specialist who shares his deep insights into the evolving landscape of tourism in the Maldives. The conversation highlights the importance of adaptive strategies, technology's pivotal role, and how to resonate with diverse vacationing demographics.
• Exploration of Ashique's career journey in the tourism industry
• Discussion on the evolution of revenue management in luxury tourism
• Understanding guest demands and changing market dynamics
• The critical role of technology and AI in revenue strategies
• Insights on pricing approaches tailored to diverse nationalities
• Lessons learned during the pandemic and resulting adaptations
• Advice for aspiring leaders in the revenue management field
• Emphasis on sustainable tourism and protecting the Maldives' natural beauty
Welcome to Maldives. Uncovered the Sunnyside podcast by Destination Future. Diving into the heart of one of the world's most iconic travel destinations, you'll hear exclusive insights and expert opinions from top industry leaders sharing their knowledge on ever-evolving landscape of tourism in the Maldives. Whether you're a professional in the industry or simply passionate about travel, this podcast is your gateway to staying inspired and informed. Let's embark on this journey together as we explore the future of tourism in paradise.
Speaker 2:Welcome to the Sunnyside podcast. My guest today is Ashfaq Ashik, a revenue management expert, whom I had the opportunity to work with on a project here in the Maltese. He is currently in Dubai. Ashik, I will let you introduce yourself to our listeners.
Speaker 2:We have worked very closely on a project and we made some great changes and that was beneficial to the business at that point, and we have the same understanding, or at least appreciation, of the revenue management segment or sector in our business. So, ashik, can you tell us a bit about your journey in the tourism industry and how you became into a revenue management expert or revenue management director in your current roles?
Speaker 3:Thank you, nabil. Thank you for having me today in the Sunnyside podcast. I have been closely watching this, listening to the previous sessions. It's very insightful and I'm glad to be part of it.
Speaker 3:Talking about my story, how I came into hospitality was back in Sri Lanka. I worked with the revenue management OTA consultant company. That was my first step and at that time, I had the exposure to handle Maldives portfolio. So they were doing for Sri Lanka, laos, singapore as well as Maldives, which was, I think, my first steps towards coming to hospitality. And one of the pivotal moments was when I visited the Maldives back in 2018 as a consultant, working for that company, and it's very how do I put it in the right words right. So when I first I still remember it vividly when I first came to the airport, I went out and I told my boss just let me go out and I want to go to the beach, I want to feel the sand beneath me, and that's when I fell in love with the destination and its charm.
Speaker 3:Then, going back, I was doing consulting for some of the resorts and guest houses in the Maldives and then, of course, I wanted to work in the destination. So I became proactive, started connecting with a lot of revenue professionals and commercial leaders on LinkedIn applied for roles and that's how I landed the first opportunity to work with Jumeirah Vittavalli, which is not there anymore. It was back in 2018, 2019. And then the funny story and how I came to Jumeirah Vittavalli. Then I realized so back when I was consulting in Sri Lanka, I used to create PowerPoint presentations, decks for, you know, stakeholders, and there was one picture that I really liked this is an overwater restaurant and then I always put it in the final slide, like you know, just to create a wow effect. And then when I joined Jumeirah and during the orientation, it was the same overwater restaurants which the resort had and then I felt like it's like destiny.
Speaker 3:Right Then, after that, my career took off. I moved to a cluster role in Ozen Collection, where handling multiple properties also revenue management scope in this particular collection of resorts were much more than a standard resort. Digital marketing, e-commerce, distribution was more exposure towards those. Then I went to work with Furavere Maldives, where working closely with the owners was something that I would like to highlight and understand what a stakeholder, what an owner, wants running a resort in the Maldives, which was a very incredible experience and then I was.
Speaker 3:I moved to Lily Hotels, which was a brief handling three properties. Then, currently I'm in Dubai. I got an opportunity to work for World of Astoria, dubai, palm Jumeirah, and this is something I always wanted to work. During the journey, I've been fortunate enough to work with amazing mentors, different, experiencing different cultures, but Maldives has been always there for me as a destination that I fell in love with. Always there for me as a destination that I fell in love with, and in today's podcast, I hope we will talk more about the scope of revenue management and less of reports and ADR, which I feel is the traditional way of perception.
Speaker 2:Thank you, ashik. We had a pre-discussion before the podcast and I mentioned to talking about revenue management. Some owners, reps or even senior management would ask what revenue do you want to manage? We have, you know, a certain percentage of wholesale business and the rest just comes because of what is there to manage, which may be, in their point of view, could be right, but I know revenue management now involves a broader scheme or broader scale of things that one needs to watch when it comes to smart business decision making.
Speaker 2:Now, bringing all that to the Maldives context, and where a lot of the resorts majority of the resorts are still, you know, in the luxury segment, if you like, and these travelers are very specific, right, some of those travelers there's really really high-end travelers still uses their personal assistants or personal travel companies to book their holidays. That said, we are still. We also see the high-end travelers just going to one of those online channels or even calling the resort directly and making their big booking. So the question is, in SD's market, especially to the Maldives, how do you adapt? Or how would you say a revenue manager should adopt revenue strategies to cater to the change in guest demands, seasonal trends and the unique challenges of the motives market?
Speaker 3:That's a great question, nabil. First of all, as you rightly mentioned, the scope of work, which has expanded from 10 years ago, or even five years ago, up to now, it's it. There's a huge difference. Right before, it was more of hey, can you have? Can you prepare these reports? What is the ADR? Sell higher on retail? These were the questions that were asked before, but during my tenure in the Maldives and working in Dubai, what I have come across is it's much more than that. It's where the strategies start A revenue manager or a director who is handling this department? The first point is how do I create demand for my product, right? So, first of all, as revenue management experts, we need to understand our products in and out, which is more than a salesperson would do. Because we need to understand our products in and out, which which is more than a salesperson would do, because we need to understand both internal and external right. Uh and um, that's how it has evolved. Like it's it's, it's become more immersive and um, what, talking about how I I see it is Maldives talking about.
Speaker 3:Maldives has set a really high bar for luxury travel. It's been the same case since the beginning of tourism, I would say back in the Maldives. And one thing that I always say, I always say to my colleagues, is every resort here it's like its own destination, right? You need to know what you have as a product and what you're offering to the guests and what unique experience you can create for your guests. Let's say, for example, a guest who's going to stay for seven to 10 days and, trust me, they do their research and they book two to three months ahead. You can't just rely on a beautiful beach and call it a day, right. So that's where we come in, working closely with the sales and marketing. Say we start curating offers and packages. Right, and that's the beginning of it. It can be. Packages can include dining experiences, wellness programs, adventure activities basically how we can keep a guest engaged and make them feel like they're part of something special.
Speaker 3:So this originates from revenue management. We see the data of the past, we see the trends of the future, how it looks, and then, ok, this is where these are the guests we need and that's where we start. Something we tried and it worked in my previous you know project was a pickpocket theory. This is something I learned in my master's, so it's basically creating multiple touch points for spending. That also has become part of revenue management now From a guest, how I can take money out of their pocket by offering different experiences like private dining, a sunset dolphin cruise, bespoke spa treatment, how I can add value to their stay and to drive incremental revenue. So, moving on from rooms, it has become, especially with the luxury travelers, how I can keep them engaged and how I can add value right and that's gonna give us incremental revenue.
Speaker 3:Also, understanding the seasonality is another factor when it comes to luxury. So most of the luxury travelers do come to Maldives during winter seasons. In summer, we need other markets such as India, china and some of the Eastern European markets to have base business. So that's something we need to understand as well. And another important factor is the school holidays, school breaks, flight availability of your feeder markets and everything has to come together to see is your property, your resort, are you showcasing the right product to meet the demand of the guest? Then, another something that we really looked at when it comes to luxury travelers're going to sustain them and how you're going to make sure they produce for you as usual. Also, another important thing that we really look at is changing from guest perspective and more families are starting to travel and the resort should have the right inventory mix multi-bedroom villas, do you have enough space for smaller families to come in? And so on. So it's more of your holistic view of your resort and how you can present it to your guests and make sure they book them.
Speaker 2:I mean revenue management is, as I mentioned before sometimes it can get misunderstood, just for you know digging on numbers with collecting and using this information to help make the right business decisions to drive those visitors right and you mentioned about data, right. So it is definitely a data-driven department or role where you need all these past history data and future data as much as possible to build on various these packages and offers or, broadly, the strategies to sell the resort. So now, in the age of AI and where everyone is trying to use AI at some point for something, I would like to ask you the question how does these advanced tools like AI or predictive analytics and real-time pricing impact your decision in all that you just explained?
Speaker 3:Thank you, nabil, love this topic. Talking about importance of technology in revenue management and investment in these technologies are vital. It is game changer for revenue management. It's like having a crystal ball, but better. It helps you see things, predict things based on the trends, and you don't waste time on collecting the reports. There are ready-made reports, preset reports, which you can get by click of a button. Also, we see a lot of tools that are now more user-friendly, simplified and, based on my experience investing in these tools, the ROI is exponential.
Speaker 3:One of the examples is OTA Insight, which is Lighthouse now, where I can see my competitor changing rates and how frequent they are changing. Is it affecting any demand in the market? Is it because of a special event? It also gives me hotspots. On days that there are a lot of rate change happens right. So I have an understanding about the market. I can also segregate. I can compare my meal plan pricing Maldives, yes, it has multiple meal plans offering to the guests. So I also compare my half board pricing. What is it versus my comp set? And also I can see LOS pricing. Do they have length of stray pricing implemented and how much are they selling by each room type and by how many guests. So tools such as this helps us to see in a broader perspective of not just going into an OTA, which it takes a lot of time, but I can get the data in a single click.
Speaker 3:And another important data point that I really look at is your own website thing. I advocate for smaller properties, smaller resorts, locally owned resorts is to bring build their brand presence through the website. Still, it's unfortunate to see a lot of established resorts even doesn't have the proper setup when it comes to their booking engines. How do they distribute? How is the channel manager working? So that's something we really need to look at when it comes to incorporating technology. And another interesting is Google Analytics. Right, it is a hidden gem, as I would like to call it. We think it's just for marketing, but it's more for making better decisions, right? So this tells you which guests are interested in your property, how much time are they spending, which room type they are looking, what offers they like. You can break it down to my new details. This is what helps both marketing and revenue teams to optimize, and we work on optimal pricing and also our distribution strategies. And we work on optimal pricing and also our distribution strategies.
Speaker 3:Another interesting tool that I came across was Hotel IQ, and a unique feature is it tells you the opportunity cost of when you sell your last room. Did you make a gain or a loss? Right, it tells you what should have been the right price, but did you undersell yourself? Something that is cool, cool, and these are the things that, as a general manager, commercial leaders of the resort should look at are you selling your right room at the right price to the right guest? Right? The basics of revenue management.
Speaker 3:And also another thing which helps tools that helps us is dynamic pricing. Till this day, one of the challenges that when I speak to my colleagues back in the Maldives, that they don't or some of the resorts, I would put it this way, do not have the right tool to have dynamic pricing which is done in real time. There are a lot of revenue management systems available with this option, where you can price automate based on the demand, based on your availability, and so on. So, to sum it up, investment in technology is vital and this is something I really advocate for all resorts to you know, spend some time on it and it can, and also it's just not for a revenue manager. Yes, they use it more frequently, but it's also for the extended commercial team and to the general managers of the resorts.
Speaker 2:Moving on a little bit about the Maldives. You see, the Maldives we all say it's a very special place. It's just it's because, know, moldy started as a as a resort destination, as a tourist uh resort, one island, one resort destination and uh targeting very uh specific uh clientele right when it comes to the geographic uh you know very, let's say, very european driven market segment, right. But now uh, moldybs is um is attracting travelers from different continents and with various uh varying uh spending habits, like from uh budget hotel, economy hotel, to the mid-scale hotel, to luxury hotels and soon into the luxury villas. So we are attracting different segments of the market now. So how do you tailor your approach in your role for different guest demographics and nationalities when pricing and helping the team with strategies?
Speaker 3:It's a fascinating challenge, I would say. Like you mentioned, maldives attract high spenders, so every decision that we make has to have X number of return. So the first step as revenue or in the commercial team, what I involve myself is to understand who is my ideal guest. To do that, we again go into data. We find out in terms of guest nationality, by room type, by meal plan and how did they book, and then we map out the spending per occupied room or how much they're willing to spend other than the rooms because it's it's very room price are more uh, based on competition. But then when they come to the resort, we need to know how much money are they going to spend, especially the luxury travelers, right um, based on that, we know who is our um ideal guest, or the guest profile we call it. When we have that, I work I mean in the past marketing and revenue management team work together and this is the core activity to create spark or the interest with the guests, with those spenders, with those guests who are traveling to the Maldives, and then it goes to sales who, of course, convert them right. So it's not just one person task. We need to understand who is our ideal guest and how much are they willing to spend, and based on that, we go into markets that are more profitable for me, for the resort.
Speaker 3:When it comes to different nationalities that Maldives attract, we also need to look at their cultural nuances, which are crucial, and something interesting that I learned moving back to Dubai was in one of the tourism events. The Dubai Airport Authority shared this information to us Every passenger who passes gets a survey and they had low satisfaction score from Chinese travelers. So what they did was a survey to understand and they realized that not having a hot water dispenser was the key for Chinese, because they love to have their flask with the tea bags and they like to have it right. It's a cultural nuance which they didn't have. So, when it comes to analyzing the data, understanding your guests, even small details make a big difference. Also, when it comes to understanding our guests and what we can offer, how do we tailor is looking at the guest reviews. So pre-pandemic, I would say, guest reputation management was not part, was not really looked at, but then, post-pandemic, it really came into the scope of revenue management to make sure the guest reviews are looked at and discussed with the operations team.
Speaker 3:Another example which I can give from my experience was back in the day in Sri Lanka, a five-star hotel in a beautiful city of Kandy where they had amazing spread for breakfast and in bookingcom their score for breakfast was the lowest and of course we are clueless, right. So we went in to find out how important it is. What is the breakfast? Is it good? But it was good spread and then we realized the majority of their guests were Chinese travelers and they did not have the food that they would like to have. So again coming back to the Maldives, where I used to send 14-day guest nationality mix to the operations, so they know who is coming. They know who is coming.
Speaker 3:How do we make sure we give great service and we understand their cultural nuances and we understand how much they're willing to spend and how I can make sure to get the money out of them to make incremental revenue? Also, pricing based on long haul and short haul markets is something that we looked at. Another important thing that's growing with the travelers is price integrity. So, which is very important and being in revenue, it's a responsibility of us to make sure our price when we display online, it is. It is there and it's same across all channels and, of course, you maintain your gap with your wholesale market so that they can put their mark up. Still a challenge. I think Maldives has evolved from where it was to now, but still there are challenges.
Speaker 3:And another big thing that I personally believe needs to be inculcated in the Maldives tourism industry is the repeaters.
Speaker 3:Maldives as a destination attracts a lot of repeaters because people like me, who fell in love with the island, will keep coming back to the same resort and the people talking up because of the Maldivian culture, the people and what it has to offer and the beauty right.
Speaker 3:So, unfortunately, what we see, or what I tried to tackle in the past, is when a repeater comes in, we always say, okay, give a lower price. But that's not the case. They are not coming to you because you're offering cheaper price. They are coming because they love the resort and the people and the service. So I personally believe, to attract different travelers, different demographics and nationalities and their spending habits, every resort should have a strong repeater benefits, which can be in terms of not in terms of pricing, but a low cost, high impact benefits to them and overall. To sum it up, a resort who wants to attract the right audience is more towards looking at tref, par and profitability, that is, total revenue per available room and profitability by market rather than ADR. End of the day, as a commercial professional, our deliverables are is to give profits back to the owners and the key stakeholders.
Speaker 2:Now, moving to the next question. You just touched on pandemic and how things have changed, and I think pandemic was, in a way, a blessing in disguise, because I am saying it is because, especially in the Maldives after pandemic, some of the technologies that were out there that was not appreciated or not utilized were used or started. People started using those more and it is becoming an everyday habit for us now, especially the usage of technology, whether it is smart, online, meetings and presentations online and things like that. Now, with luxury travel, definitely has rebounded after the pandemic. Rebounded after the pandemic. If you have to share some stories, or even one story, what lessons have you learned in adopting the revenue strategies during the recovery phase and now?
Speaker 3:I think pandemic was a wake-up call for the entire industry. One of the biggest shifts that I have learned in the recovery phase was the tendency to book direct. The guests wanted more information about the resorts they are traveling to, more information, safety for themselves and their family. So they started researching and booking more directly, which helps the resort. In this case, direct bookings are the cheapest channel a resort could ask for you have no expenses right and also gives you the right price, the higher price when comparing to other segments. Another interesting thing which I have seen is the adaptation of dynamic distribution. Even for partners whom you have your wholesale contract with, even they have their sub-agents, they distribute your rates and availability right. So something that is very key for all the commercial leaders is to understand who has your rates and availability, and there are few partners. Few channels that have come up post-pandemic is the transparent distribution channels such as Roybos. You log in, you can decide to whom you want to distribute your rates and availability and then you know you can set your limit, your restrictions and so on, and then you know you can set your limit, your restrictions and so on. And another thing which I mean I want to really recommend, highly recommend to all the listeners of the podcast to go back and ask your revenue manager or your sales team how is your distribution? Is it strong? Do you have the right technology? Are you putting your rooms and rooms in the right forefront? Is it there in the right technology? Are you putting your rooms in the right forefront? Is it there in the right channels? Are you attracting the right customers that you want? Some markets more traditional, some markets are developing, they're evolving and do you have the right tool to push all your rates and availability to them? Again, post-pandemic, everything has to be quick. You don't have to send an email, wait for 24 hours and then to understand whether you have the availability or not. So the tendency, what I see currently in the industry, is moving towards those connectivity or connected partners who has their own tools and and you, you know you sell your rooms to them.
Speaker 3:Lastly, is your diversified geomix for the resort? Like I said, it's it's a wake-up call. Some of the resorts that I worked with were heavily dependent on one particular market and it was very challenging in the recovery phase. So something that we have learned is to diversify, to look in for new markets that are going to give us. Again, how do you choose it? You go back to your numbers, understand who likes the property, who is a frequent visitor to the Maldives and how you can attract them.
Speaker 3:And, interestingly, when I was during the pandemic and the recovery phase, some of the resorts really capitalized on the local market promotions, which I think is something that is missing in the market. Like any destinations, I think Maldives does have scope for local travelers because of the spending powers and they can only help the resorts. So, to sum it up, recovering from the pandemic, the target was to change. Instead of ADR, we more looked at the profitability and it's not the market that pays you the highest, it's who gives you the maximum profit. We started looking into Trefpar, refpar and STR was something that we looked at to see. Are we getting the right, fair share from the market?
Speaker 2:So the next question I want to ask from you, Ashik, as someone I admire and someone who I see has lots of potential in this industry and in your specific field what advice would you give to aspiring leaders in the Maldives tourism industry, especially in the revenue management role?
Speaker 3:My advice to the aspiring leaders who want to become into revenue management also to the to the Moldevians is, in general would say, is ask why the the foremost, foremost function of a revenue manager or person who wants to become an expert in this field is to ask why? Be curious, Challenge your commercial team right. That's the first thing. It doesn't have to be that you're working. You can also start whichever job that you're currently at and you want to become. Start asking the question why, why we do what we do. This is something I have learned from my leaders as well, and that's what makes you grow. And finding the right mentor is key. Again, you know, having the person who is aspirational and who's looking to grow and having them as a mentor is the key for the younger generation or who wants to get into this field. And another interesting thing about being a revenue manager is you need to have data, you need to have market trends, you need to connect with other revenue professionals. So, personally, I use LinkedIn. It's a very powerful tool to say, connected with a lot of revenue professionals, commercial leaders, to understand what they think about the market, what worked, what didn't work, and then you know. Then we start implementing those in our resorts as well and to understand basics of revenue management. There are plenty of courses available online and I would recommend to start basic courses. You know two hours, two hours, three hours just to spend, to understand whether this particular topic really interests and then you know you can carry on after that.
Speaker 3:The biggest advice that I would give to someone who wants to become a revenue leader is to work in a local resort, Because personally I feel the scope of work has no limit. Resort, because personally I feel the scope of work has no limit. But the difference in working for a big brand is mostly it's like a silo. People are experts in their own field so they try to do only this and sometimes things don't really connect. But working for locally owned resorts, I think, has been the best in my experience to try out revenue management practices, to try out strategies which worked and also they understand when it comes to how you can make more money. You know that's the whole topic. So it has worked for me better and I think we will have the power to change and bring betterment to the resort because of more flexibilities being given you for that, ashik um.
Speaker 2:We are very close now. We're close to um the end of our podcast. I know at the beginning of our chat you mentioned about how you felt when you first came to the motives and so on. Uh, but uh, is there any specific or particular memorable moment or experience you have had while working here in the Maldives?
Speaker 3:Oh, plenty. I will share a couple. First thing is working with industry leaders such as yourself, nabil, has been the foundation for my career and where I grew and I looked things in different perspective. So that's something working there that gave me. It's very memorable for me. And another thing is the people and the culture. You will not believe I still ask friends who travel from Maldives to Dubai to bring me masmerous reha and fried green leaves because I've got the taste of the local food and that's something we try to replicate, Roshi Mashuni at home. So I really connect myself with the food in the maldives. And also, uh, maldives, you know it's, it's, it's, it's the nature, it's, it's beautiful. Like everyone who travels falls in love with the destination, right, so yeah, it's.
Speaker 2:It's given me a lot of memorable moments and experiences working in the maldives in one part part any other thoughts on final thoughts, anything else you would like to share with our listeners today about the future of tourism in the Maldives. When we founded this NGO, you were among the first that I shared the story with, and you very well know the purpose of our destination future is to socialize these topics right, To engage more people in the industry and to bring to the surface these kind of ideas in various parts of the business. So anything that you would like to share, it can be controversial or not controversial, just anything as a final thought Maldives is a blessed country.
Speaker 3:It has abundance of natural resources. Everyone needs to be proud of it, and we also, at the same time, have the responsibility to protect it. Well, I think, as the industry grows, balancing sustainability with innovation is going to be key, because, as industry grows, balancing sustainability with innovation is going to be key because, as industry professionals, we need to ensure that this paradise remains for future generations.
Speaker 4:Thank you for joining us on Maldives Uncovered, the Sunnyside podcast by Destination Future. We hope today's episode has sparked new ideas and given you valuable insight into the Maldives as a leading travel destination. Don't forget to subscribe, stay connected with our community and be part of the conversation. Until next time, keep exploring and pushing the boundaries of what's possible in the world of tourism.
