German luxury hotel group Kempinski Hotels this week appointed veteran hotelier Matthias Al-Amiry its regional vice-president for the Southeast Asia region. Al-Amiry, who was formerly the managing director of the company’s flagship property in Berlin, the Hotel Adlon Kempinski, will be responsible for the oversight of Kempinski’s properties in Bangkok, Jakarta and Bali, as well as its upcoming developments in Kuala Lumpur, and for all future projects in the region.

Al-Amiry has over 30 years’ experience in the five-star luxury hotel industry around the world, where he has held a variety of management positions overseeing various properties. Besides the Adlon Kempinski, his portfolio includes the Raffles Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten in Germany, the Peninsula Manila in the Philippines, the Al Faisaliah in Saudi Arabia, the Raffles Beijing Hotel in China, and the MGM Cotai in Macau.

Alongside his new appointment as regional head, he is also stepping into a second role as the managing director of the Capitol Kempinski in Singapore. He takes over from Christian Gurtner, who saw the hotel through its re-opening in 2018. Of this role, Al-Amiry said he was anticipating returning to Asia after his stint back home in Germany, where he was born and raised.

“My first concern is to get to know the hotel, its procedures and especially its staff and to settle in as quickly as possible,” he said, adding that the hotel’s owner is highly committed and supportive.

The Capitol Kempinski was the focal point of a long-drawn argument between its owners for much of the previous decade, as the members of the consortium developing the property disagreed over the financial and legal aspects of the arrangement. Eventually the present owner, Perennial Real Estate Holdings, emerged as the sole owner of the project and the hotel was able to open its doors in October 2018.