Hermann Wegmueller is a Swiss expatriate who has been in the travel industry since the age of 16 years, previously working in Bali and Bangkok. A newcomer in Jakarta having moved the capital in September, led Hermann MG Global wholesaler hotel in the travel industry in Indonesia and worldwide.
Wegmueller Hermann and his family
What differences have you noticed between the travel industries of Indonesia and Thailand?
Thailand sees tourism as the largest foreign exchange earner, and has set up a tourism promotion council government with significant funds to promote the country in all markets of the source worldwide. The Indonesian government has just started to realize and develop several large tourist destinations within the country.
Outside of Bangkok, Thailand offers destinations such as Pattaya, with lots of entertainment; Hua Hin is a peaceful destination for casual golf; Koh Samui as a small tropical island with coconut palms; Phuket as a large integrated resort area; and more. In Indonesia, we are still mainly concentrated on Bali and Lombok a bit. The potential, particularly in eastern Indonesia, is huge and untapped. In a word, the development in Indonesia took a much slower way, except for Bali.
You are CEO of MG Global wholesaler hotel in the travel industry. Tell us exactly what your business.
We provide more than 3500 travel agents with the best possible prices and availability in hotels and resorts throughout Indonesia and the world. In Indonesia, we have about 3,000 hotels under direct contracts with these prices and availability. We have strategic partnerships with other global wholesalers and aggregators that we connect with by various highly sophisticated software. As such, we can provide wholesale hotel rates worldwide.
Your company provides the best offers customers over 250,000 hotels worldwide. Can you explain how the model works for B2B MG Group?
Due to the immense power and ability to deliver more than 1.5 million overnight stays per year at hotels in Indonesia buy MG, we are able to negotiate exclusive offers (to rate both static and dynamic) that are distributed to agents, who in turn sell to their customers business and leisure. This business model provides a distribution opportunity at low cost, avoiding paying large commissions to online travel agencies, who in turn spend huge amounts on marketing search engine and other forms of advertising. In general, travel agents are able to offer lower pricings in 95 percent of the hotels in a given time.
The MG Group has four major distribution channels: MG Bedbank, Abacus RoomDeal, Rajakamar.com and MG Destinations. What is your business to achieve through these channels?
We aim to get our products in all channels and cover all segments of the hotel distribution business. MG Bedbank targets the B2B market segment in Indonesia, while rajakamar.com is for consumers and focuses on the development of organic traffic, booking through applications and exclusive deals like the one that just launched with the bank BCA : www.rajakamar.com/BCA.
RoomDeal is an integrated B2B booking system in the Sabre / Abacus GDS (flight booking system for travel agents) and service agents throughout Asia Pacific. MG Destination is a support division for other channels and provides logistics services such as transportation. Corporateroomdeal.com reservation provides a platform for enterprise businesses, and global MG focuses on the exploitation of our strength in the domestic market to provide Indonesian hotels to customers and global B2B aggregators, as well as making direct contracts with hotels in key destinations such as Singapore and Malaysia.
What about working in the hospitality industry / entertainment that excites you then?
The changing environment as part of creating a vacation experience, be dynamic, exciting and in a company which is the fastest growing in the world, and the fact that it is a company that everyone dreams of (both as a profession or as a client). In addition, there is the matter of a people and relationships are still very important.
Working alongside many hotels and travel agencies in Indonesia, you must have an overview of the challenges they face. What is the main challenge that the industry faces here in Indonesia and what would you do to change that?
The choice of hotels and activities that customers is constantly growing. To review this "jungle" is the most difficult aspect. For example, new hotels open almost every day. It is very difficult to get the right staff for the job, and the people in the service sector should be better educated in special tourism schools, to get a better wage rises across the sector. The government should expand incentives for these educational institutions.
With a middle class growing in Indonesia, what do you expect going in the travel / tourism sector in the next five years?
Indonesians will continue to travel and the sector is destined to rise further. With less time on their hands, I predict that more people will book their holidays online. They adopt new technologies (check in their rooms prior to arrival with their smart phones, for example), and opt for new hotels and destinations.
People who have worked with you say you are extremely hard working. What trait in business do you believe is most important to have to be successful?
People in this industry expect instant answers to conduct their work, so it is imperative to be on your toes. Furthermore, honesty and respect are important.
You must be consistent with what you say and what you actually do and deliver. It is much better to offer more than what was promised, rather than the reverse.
You are a diving instructor diving under license. Do you have any plans to leave the corporate world and a career underwater?
I used to do it when I was very young after graduating in order to gain experience in teaching and traveling. However, I will continue to dive recreationally when I have the opportunity to do so.
When you check in a hotel, what is the first thing you notice and why?
How quickly and professionally check-in is processed and how easy it is to understand the room facilities, such as switches, etc. Free and fast internet access is extremely important, as a good bed
Where will you and your family on vacation at the end of the year?
We will withdraw in a mountain ski resort in Switzerland for the holiday season.
Thank you, Hermann. To contact, please email: hermann.wegmueller@mg-global.net