La Villa by La Montagne

ADDRESS:

Yushan Town, Pan'an County, Jinhua, Zhejiang Province

TEL: (0579) 8466 9999

INTERVIEW WITH EDDIE WONG, GENERAL MANAGER

Eddie Wong, general manager of La Montagne and La Villa by La Montagne, is at work building an exciting new hotel concept: transforming a whole mountain into a luxury forest community. The whole project will encompass two hotels, hundreds of residential villas, and a shopping center, all located within a 3-hour drive of Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Ningbo.

You've had experience at various luxury brands throughout your career. Why did you join this project and what makes it unique?

At first, I thought this isn’t like anything I've done before. I've always worked in city hotels. When I worked in resorts it was in Dubai and The Maldives, which are established destinations. So I came to La Villa with an open mind. After visiting, what really made me join was talking to the chairman, Mr Mingde He. Hearing his level of passion for this project, from a person who should be close to retirement, that was the first thing that captured my imagination. Then seeing the results of this place coming together in real-time, seeing how beautiful it is and the potential, made me want to join.

What is the vision behind this project?

The vision for this whole project started with building a community. Mr He had this project called Yuchen, and its vision is to bring the city lifestyle into the mountains. 

After having built some of the villas, he thought having residential is not enough. So that's when he thought, I need a hotel. I need infrastructure so that people can enjoy a lifestyle here, but at the same time, enjoy the convenience of shopping, eating, exercising, etc.

When I first came here it was for opening the La Montagne hotel, which is at the top of the mountain. We thought one hotel is not enough. Let's make it two. So we took 75 villas at the bottom of the mountain, and made those into another hotel, La Villa. Together with the villas, we built a beautiful building that includes a children’s play area, mahjong rooms, snooker table, 3D golf, and an allday dining complex, which can seat 200 people. Now we feel that the hotel is actually the main component of this whole project, because it brings the community to life.

What do today's travellers look for and value in a hotel? How does La Villa appeal to them?

When you look at value, it's not a dollar value. It's what an experience can bring you emotionally or through the heart. Coming here to the mountainous La Villa will bring a sense of relief. Because all travelling is domestic. People have already visited destinations like Sanya, Lijiang, Kunming, or Xiamen. Everybody is starting to look for something new and different. Having this resort here in Zhejiang, people will feel they can actually leave the city and go to a destination that they’ve never been before.

What do you see as the future of hotel experiences and the future for La Villa?

When I think of the concept of La Montagne and La Villa in the future, it has to be applicable to clients now. Travellers want a total experience. They want a traditional part that is comfortable, but at the same time they want something wang hong. It's a component where you can proudly show that you've been somewhere or are doing something different that others see and want to do too. When we built this hotel, we combined these factors together to make sure that guests have the traditional hotel feeling, but at the same time, there are different and new things that are appealing.