Filinvest unit invests P1.5B for new resort

CEBU, Philippines — Filinvest Hospitality Corporation, a subsidiary of Filinvest Development Corporation, will be investing P1.5 billion for its third hotel property in Cebu, the 308-room Grafik Resort on Mactan Island.

The Gotianun family of Cebu bought the Duawon Beach property, an old time favorite destination of most Cebuanos, from its original owners and planning to develop the 2.8 hectare property into the first ever hip and vivid resort facility. The project will be designed to suit the preferences of the younger market.

In an interview with Francis Gotianun, FHC vice president, he said that Cebu with its vibrant tourism lure, still has to provide a facility that will get the attention of the millennial segment, and Grafik Resort is aimed at bridging this gap.

Playing with the rugged nature and landscape of the Duawon Beach, Gotianun said Grafik will pioneer the offering of revolutionized fun in a hotel setting.

Gotianun said the growing millennial market is something that is "underserved" in the hospitality business in Cebu, despite its huge potential to contribute to the tourism-led economies like Cebu.

Compared to its existing properties like the luxurious Crimson Resort in Mactan, and the business hotel positioned Quest Hotel in Cebu City, this third property will add spice to the tourism choices of destinations in Cebu, Gotianun said.

The Gotianun scion, who belongs to the third generation, said that Grafik Resort is conceptualized to capture the fun-seeking, less formal, unpredictable whims of the younger group, capitalizing the already rugged terrain of Duawon Beach.

The property, which formally broke ground over the weekend, is set to open by 2020.

Pricing, according to Gotianun will also be pegged at the right level of the younger spectrum. Room offerings will also break the traditional hotel structure, and will adjust to the millennial way.

The resort will provide a lot of firsts in the hospitality sector in Cebu. As a millennial himself, Gotianun said the project is closer to his heart.

Upon opening the property expects to hire at least 400 personnel.

Grafik Resort will be managed by the Group's hotel management arm Chroma Hospitality Inc., a joint venture between the Gotianun family and an Indonesian hotel operator. (FREEMAN)