Checking In
Changing the face of travel
Airport lounge visionary Mr. Song Hoi-see By Tania Moffat
customer offerings. Te Plaza Premium Group is a global service brand head- quartered in Hong Kong and founded by Mr. Song Hoi-see. Te company’s goal is to make the traveller’s airport experi- ence seamless and effortless, and through their considerate services, change the travellers’ perception of travel at the air- port. No longer is the airport lounge out of reach for the common traveller. Te opening of the Plaza Premium
W
Lounge in Winnipeg involved an elabo- rate and beautiful ceremony. “We host grand opening ceremonies in some loca- tions out of our respect for tradition, in- cluding the arrangement of a traditional blessing ceremony for luck and prosper- ity (e.g. lion dance, or other local bless- ing performance), as well as to provide an official announcement that we are now ready to welcome guests,” Mr. Song tells us.
Te man behind the brand “I come from a very humble begin-
ning, growing up in a big family in Malacca, Malaysia,” says Mr. Song, the twelfth of thirteen children. Perhaps this is why he is so approachable and hands on. His passion for the service industry is sincere, he takes the time to person- ally talk to front line staff and share the Group’s missions, visions and core values. He and his wife, Linda, are the proud
parents of both a daughter and son. Life is busy but he takes time to meditate every evening and keep fit by working out regularly. Once an avid badminton player, he has now taken up golf, but his most interesting hobby is his affinity to collect art. “It started out of my curiosity to understand the Chinese culture and its long history. I like to collect artwork,
58 • Spring 2016 Plaza Premium’s founder Mr. Song Hoi-see.
especially Chinese antiques from the Han and Tang Dynasties, which are mu- seum pieces, and contemporary Chinese paintings,” he shares. After a notable career in investment banking, Mr. Song went on to launch his own business. Along with a change in careers he experienced a drastic change in his travel experiences. He found flying economy class without airport lounge privileges made it a struggle to work ef- fectively while on-the-go. With only 15 per cent of travellers in first or business class, and the remaining 85 per cent left with no one to care for
them or their travel needs, he had dis- covered a significant gap in service. His business plan was born from wanting to do something for the majority, to change the prevailing perception that airport lounges should be reserved for premium travellers only. Mr. Song’s new aim was to open an independent airport lounge that would welcome all
travellers, re-
gardless of the airline or class they chose to fly. It was a novel idea, but in order to make it viable Mr. Song had to success- fully pitch it. “We encountered a lot of challenges when we revealed our new business
The Hub
innipeg Richardson International Airport recently welcomed Plaza Premium Lounge to its
Supplied by PPG.
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