Oyo’s PHL occupancy rate at 40% despite pandemic
OYO HOTELS and Homes reported keeping a relatively good performance in the Philippines and Southeast Asia despite the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
In a statement, the tech-based hospitality firm said it had an occupancy rate of 40% in the Philippines for the month of May, even as the occupancy rate dropped to 20% for the whole industry.
“Based on the available industry data, Oyo properties in Southeast Asia have fared better than the market in these troubled times, with Oyo revenue per available room dropping by 5% vs 20% for the industry in February over January,” Mandar Vaidya, Oyo CEO of Japan, Southeast Asia and Middle East, said in the statement.
The company noted in the Philippines, Oyo was a partner of government and medical organizations, including the Office of the Vice-President, in providing shelter for frontliners and returning overseas Filipino workers.
With this reception, the company remains optimistic in keeping its Philippines and Southeast Asia footprints as strategic growth markets for Oyo.
“We are learning from trends in countries like Vietnam and Malaysia that are slowly coming back post-lockdowns…,” Ankit Gupta, Oyo country head in the Philippines, said in the statement.
“Learning from our experiences in these countries, we’ve observed that travel destinations near larger cities show very high occupancies during weekends and customers prefer long stays, especially with offline partners,” he added.
Mr. Gupta said Oyo’s thrust is to launch sanitation efforts that would keep customer confidence in its properties. Among these initiatives are implementing hygiene protocols and training hotel staff on improved sanitation procedures.
“As a brand committed to offering safe accommodation options, Oyo is proactively leading the change in housekeeping and cleanliness protocols within the hospitality industry, across all Oyo properties,” he said.
Oyo is a hotel start-up that started in 2013 and is now present in over 800 cities in 80 countries across the world. In the Philippines, it operates properties in Manila, Batangas, Cebu and Davao. — Denise A. Valdez
