Tune Appoints 29-Year Old GM to New Melbourne Hotel

Tune Hotels has appointed one of the youngest general managers within its group to its first Australian property in Melbourne.

Nathan Copsey, 29, will oversee operations and around 20 staff at the new Tune Hotel Melbourne in Swanston Street, Carlton, which is set to open 1 November 2013.

The hospitality management professional has 11 years’ experience working in hotels across Australia and the UK including Melbourne Parkview Hotel, Bayview on the Park Melbourne and The Chamberlain Hotel in London.

Tune Hotels, which also operates hotels across Asia and the UK, has pioneered a “pay-as-you-use” concept that has become popular among travellers from across the world. Under the concept, guests only pay for room rates with the option of adding on other amenities like towels and toiletries, air-conditioning, in-room Wi-Fi and satellite TV service.

“This concept is something Australia is really crying out for at the moment,” Mr Copsey said. “It has been very popular throughout the UK and Asia and I believe it’s going to take off also in Australia. Rooms in central Melbourne rarely cost less than $150 but guests who book in advance with Tune Hotel Melbourne will be able to get a room for $70 or $80. Rooms will sometimes be cheaper than a cab ride home from the city for some people. I’m excited to run Australia’s first Tune Hotel and bring this new accommodation model to the marketplace.”

The 225-room Tune Hotel Melbourne is located at 609 Swanston Street, Carlton, next to the University of Melbourne, just two streets away from popular Lygon Street and minutes to Melbourne’s Central Business District.

At 29, Mr Copsey is one of the youngest hotel managers within the Tune Group.

“Tune is bringing in people like me who are really excited about the concept and who are prepared to change their views about how hotels work,” Mr Copsey said. “We provide high-quality accommodation which focuses on key essentials, but without the generally underused facilities found in other hotels such as swimming pools, business centres and gymnasiums. By eliminating these facilities, we’re able to pass on savings to guests in the form of low room rates.”

Mr Copsey said Tune Hotel Melbourne would cater to the local weekend leisure market, international travellers and cost conscious business travellers.

“Melburnians love going into the city for the footy or the theatre and then staying at a hotel for the night or the weekend, so we see that market as a great opportunity,” he said. “The Tune Hotels brand is well recognised in Asia and we believe the hotel will also appeal to international visitors who are familiar with the concept. We are working on growing our brand within the corporate market as we can save business travellers money while still offering them a great night’s sleep.”

Along with being the home of Australia’s first Tune Hotels’ property, Melbourne will also be the headquarters overseeing the group’s Australia and New Zealand operations, working in conjunction with the corporate office in Kuala Lumpur.

There are currently 32 Tune Hotels in operation in 8 countries, 11 in operation in Malaysia, 5 in the UK, 1 in India and Japan, 5 each in Indonesia and the Philippines and 4 in Thailand.

See also: HD Video Interview with Mark Lankester, CEO of Tune Hotels and HD Video of New Look Rooms at Downtown KL