In-conversation: Sankarsana Satria, Corporate GM, Nakula
“This collaboration (with Marriott) allows us to cater to more than +200 million Marriott Bonvoy members who can now redeem and earn points while staying at our properties”
Sankarsana Satria has spent more than 20 years in the hospitality industry. His career has taken him from the UAE to Indonesia, and now he resides in Bali acting as Corporate General Manager for Nakula Villa Management & Rental.
Operating a local luxury villa management company has its challenges. Sankarsana shares how Nakula Villa Management & Rental has created an edge by maintaining consistently high service standards, supported by technology and instituting customer feedback loops into their operations. Their efforts have led to growing brand recognition, including being admitted to Homes & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy global collection of premium and luxury whole home rentals.
Nakula Villa Management & Rental is a professional Villa Management company that has been established since 2012. With their #WelcomeHome tagline, Nakula aspires to be a local company that takes pride in delivering a memorable holiday experience as if you were at home. Spread across some of the best destinations in Nusa Dua, Jimbaran, Seminyak, Kerobokan, Canggu, Berawa, Sanur, Ubud, and Tabanan, Nakula manages 70+ Villa properties, 4 hotels, and 2 co-working spaces. With the ability to attract guests originating from domestic and international sources, including Europe, Australia, Asia, the Middle East, and the United States, Nakula Villa Management & Rental can transform your assets into self-sustaining and profitable investments.
Love for sharing his hometown of Bali turned into a career.
“As a Balinese born in Jakarta, I frequently visited Bali during school breaks and it was always a delightful experience that captivated me. This exposure sparked my fascination with the hospitality and tourism sector. [I loved] that I can share what Bali is renowned for to those from other countries. At its essence, Bali's allure lies in its people, it's always the people. By seeing, by interacting with people it gives more colour to and more knowledge about how we see things, our lives personally and professionally.”
Rising demand for Bali villas leads to listing with Homes & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy
"The villa industry experienced significant growth during the pandemic as people sought out private spaces for gatherings with family and friends. Unlike hotels where options are limited to restaurants or moving from room to room, villas offer a more secluded, private and secure environment, especially for adhering to social distancing guidelines.
Nakula Villa Management & Rental properties joined Homes & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy, after their research convinced them of the rising market demand 3-4 years ago. Homes & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy reviewed our product, service, and guest journey, to be assured that we meet their standards. This collaboration allows us to cater to more than +200 million Marriott Bonvoy members who can now redeem and earn points while staying at our properties listed on their platform. Our channel manager is seamlessly integrated with Marriott's system, enabling us to showcase our properties with accurate rates and availability.”
Delivering Nakula Villa Management & Rental’s service philosophy: welcome home.
"At Nakula Villa Management & Rental, our guiding principle is simple yet profound: 'welcome home'. It embodies our heartfelt desire for every guest, across all our carefully curated properties, whether nestled in private villas or gracing picturesque beachfronts, to feel embraced by the warmth of home. We strive to create an environment where their comfort knows no bounds. This philosophy beats at the heart of our operational team.
We start from the moment the reservation is made, our concierge team will engage with the guest pre-arrival via WhatsApp or email to confirm transportation, dining arrangement, check-in time.
The information on arrival is then passed on to the operational team. The villa manager will distribute tasks to the butler, housekeeping, and the team. We have a checklist to make sure the villa is up to our standard.
When the guests arrive, the villa manager and butler need to be present for check-in. We ensure our butler is equipped with local knowledge about differing activities and experiences inside and outside the villa. We give them material on how to be a [good] butler, how to be discreet but attentive. For example, if the guest is swimming, the butler should make sure there is a towel and water ready before being asked. Engagement is key.
We also do courtesy calls, one day after check-in and before check-out. Rather than wait for the guest to complain, we approach them with questionnaires. We ask about their reservation experience, the room cleanliness and the quality of breakfast. As a corporate office, we are not always at the property, so we use customer feedback to measure the quality of our product and service.
For example if we typically get an average satisfaction score of 90%, we can see what to do if a score comes in below that. Customer feedback isn't just a formality ‒ it's our lifeline. It's how we measure the heartbeat of our product and service quality. If an average satisfaction score dips below our lofty standards, if the quality of breakfast falls short of sublime, we don't just sit idly by. We mobilize, we adapt, we evolve. Whether it's sending our corporate chef to retrain our on-the-ground staff or fine-tuning our processes, every action is infused with one simple goal: to ensure that every guest feels not just welcomed, but truly at home.”
Investing in an in-house PMS to provide transparency to owners and managers.
“Technology is also one of Nakula Villa Management & Rental’s main focuses. We have our own property management system (PMS). We do this because the property is unique with a lot of stakeholders. We have our own cloud-based dashboard that allows us and the villa owners to monitor sales and real-time performance. Now, we are planning to create our own channel manager.
Our dashboard tracks three indicators that property managers need to know. First is employees - whether they are coming as scheduled or need to be covered by someone from the corporate office. Second is property-are there any damages or is there maintenance that needs to be done. And lastly the customer.”
Looking ahead for Nakula Villa Management & Rental.
“As the travel industry grows, we aim to grow our business and participating with the huge potential of the travel industry, especially in Bali. By adding more properties to our listing, expanding our target market and also giving more job opportunities for locals. As easy as it may sound, we may face another challenge, such as competitive pricing and strategy: For instance, determining how to effectively market a 7-bedroom villa differs from marketing a villa with less than 5 bedrooms; the approaches cannot be identical.
For Indonesian companies, another hurdle lies in establishing brand awareness. Being an Indonesian company necessitates additional efforts to appeal to foreign markets and convey the value of being a local brand. As a company rooted in the local community, we possess the confidence to compete against international counterparts, driven by our firm belief in the competency of our local talent.”
