Why should travellers only get to rest, shower and conduct business in comfort while in transit if they are in the premium classes? Song Hoi See started Plaza Premium Lounge to address this question in 1998, and his company now operates in 35 airports. JOY LEE reports.
WHEN Song Hoi See started his private airport lounge service 18 years ago, little did he imagine that his little venture would fly far and wide.
He knew it had potential. But nothing of this magnitude.
After all, he started Plaza Premium Lounge because he just needed a place to work and rest at the airport after such privileges were withdrawn when he left his prestigious job as an investment banker. Plaza Premium Lounge has indeed come a long way.
Song himself has come a long way from his kampung roots.
He spent much of his childhood climbing trees, stealing fruits, catching fish and making his own toys while growing up in Sungai Udang, Malacca. After secondary school, he furthered his studies in the UK and subsequently moved to Hong Kong, where he is still based, and worked for Lehman Brothers.
He was with the investment bank for over seven years, rising to the position of senior vice-president. By then, Song, in his mid-30s, had started wondering: What’s next?
“If I was complacent, I would have stayed on. Everything was provided for,” he says.
But his upbringing in Sungai Udang taught him to value other things.
“I’ve made enough money. I’m from the kampung. I didn’t need a lot. I had a paid-off apartment, I was married and educated. I could try something new,” he says.
So he started a network of business centres, a rather successful venture that was eventually sold off to a listed company. In the course of running his own business, Song, who no longer had the perks of travelling business class and therefore had no access to lounge facilities, saw a gap in the air travel market that needed to be filled.
It seemed unbecoming for an ex-banker like himself — respectable and dressed to the nines — to be “stealing electricity” at airports in between flights to get some work done just because he wasn’t flying top-class anymore.
“It was embarrassing,” he admits.
Airlines and airports have always taken good care of their high-end customers. But the majority of travellers fly economy. They too, says Song, would appreciate having a place to rest, shower and conduct business during long transits.
Song approached airports with his idea of having a privately-run lounge that was not tied to any particular airline. His ideas weren’t particularly welcomed. But Song had come off a bad experience and insisted there was a real need for such services.
He fought hard and in 1998, he opened Plaza Premium Lounge’s first outlet at the KLIA and another at the Hong Kong International Airport in the same year.
Still, it wasn’t all easy. Plaza Premium Lounge was, at best, a curiosity and obscurity at the airports. Some RM3.8mil was invested into the lounge at the KLIA covering 7,500 sq ft, but it ran at an operating loss for months.
Song worked hard to promote the concept of a private airport lounge and managed to tie up with banks to offer credit card holders the privilege of using the facilities at Plaza Premium Lounge. These efforts were crucial and they helped paved the road ahead.
Today, the airport lounge business has evolved into a global entity housed under the Plaza Premium Group, which encompasses four main pillars; airport dining business, transit hotels, airport services and, of course, the airport lounge business.
Song is particularly excited about the group’s transit hotels.
Earlier this year, it launched its first airport transit hotel, Aerotel Singapore, located near the boarding gates of Changi Airport. The hotel is equipped with an outdoor swimming pool, Jacuzzi and pool-side bar in the airport’s restricted area. Aerotel Singapore offers flexible booking of a minimum of six hours.
“Our ambition is to develop a chain of iconic transit hotel, a brand that will become synonymous with transit hotels,” Song declares.
How long will it take?
Five years, maybe, he says.
Currently, Plaza Premium Group operates in more than 130 locations across 35 international airports worldwide and serves around eight million passengers a year.
The group has allocated some US$100mil over the next two years to expand its operations to 200 locations by 2018. New lounges are already in the pipeline this year for Brisbane, Rio de Janeiro and London’s Heathrow, among others. Aerotel is also expected to see new openings in the next two years.
Song says the group’s success is not easy to replicate.
“It takes time to develop the right SOP (standard operating procedures) for the different geographical locations that we are in. It involves different languages, customs and regulation.
“And it’s not easy to get the right people for your team. You need to develop the right corporate culture. My team knows the direction I’m taking, and they take pride in what they are doing,” he explains.
All this takes time, says Song. But he believes he has made the right investments to get them right at Plaza Premium Group.
At 59, Song is still excited to be grabbing the bull by the horns. He is passionate about the group and still finds his business rather interesting.
There are a lot more opportunities to explore, he suggests.
But it’s not just about growing a successful business. Song has also grown as an entrepreneur.
His views have changed and he has learned to adapt and work with different people from around the world. He has come to value teamwork and nurturing talents, as well as the importance of being versatile, observant, innovative and forward-looking.
“I’ve learnt that nothing comes easy. Sometimes we are presumptuous. We look at successful entrepreneurs, and we think they are lucky or that it was easy for them.
“But if we want to see the success of an entrepreneur, you need to look at the process. An entrepreneur has gone through a lot of challenges,” he says.
Song took home the Entrepreneur of the Year award at The Star Outstanding Business Awards 2015.
He is passionate about encouraging young entrepreneurs to persevere in their dreams. Don’t merely complain, he advises, there are opportunities in bad experiences.
“I found a gold pot,” he points out.
“You need a big vision. Observe what’s around you and anticipate what people want. Then develop a concept. That’s your vision. If you fail, you can start over. Don’t be kia si (literally, ‘afraid to die’ in Hokkien),” he adds.
Growing a global company as a Malaysian is not a far-off dream, he stresses.
“Being a Malaysian, I am proud to run this business. How many companies in Malaysia can really flourish throughout the world? We’re Malaysians. But we can really take a simple idea out there and make it international.
“It’s a legacy I want to build. Not for me. But (to show that) we Malaysians can do it,” he says.
Song’s two children are also in the business, and they seem just as passionate about moving the Plaza Premium Lounge Group forward.
Currently, he spends a fair bit of time jet-setting somewhere for business. But, being very much a kampung boy at heart, Song is happy just to wake up every day, look in the mirror and say: I didn’t do too badly, eh?
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