Hal Philp
The St Regis Doha, due to open in the coming months, will distinguish itself through its ‘unique focus on service and the customer experience,’ according to Hal Philp, the recently-appointed deputy general manager.
With its executive team now in place, the St Regis Doha is fully engaged in a pre-launch phase of recruitment, training and refinement.
Part of the Al Gassar Resort in Doha, the St Regis Doha will be one of a select family of St Regis properties in the world, and one of the first-ever in the Middle East.
“We are incredibly focused upon offering the level of service that our international guests expect, and so we are investing in the preparation necessary to ensure that everything within the hotel is up to St Regis standards,” said Philp, who joins the Doha team from St Regis Shanghai, and brings with him a wealth of experience of the luxury brand. 
“Every guest is an individual with specific tastes and different ideas about what they want from their time in Doha, and our aim is to ensure that we are totally prepared to make their time an enjoyable one,” he added.
One of the major attractions of the new hotel will be its world-famous butler service, which will see every guest at the hotel greeted and supported by their own butler throughout the duration of their stay.
In addition, the St Regis Doha will also offer concierge and personal shopper services. Hal Philp has recently personally led a recruitment tour to interview hospitality professionals from key destinations around the world to fill these and other key positions.
All 336 guest rooms, including 70 suites, will have sea-views, as well as access to a diverse range of world-class facilities.
A planning committee is in place to work towards the hotel opening.
Tareq Derbas, general manager, St Regis Doha, said: “With our complete executive team on-board, we are now positioned to move seamlessly towards the opening phase. Our service philosophy is to provide a truly bespoke experience for our guests, so we are investing in an intensive preparation stage to ensure that we are ready to deliver an immaculate product for our guests.”
With a heritage dating back more than 100 years to the grand opening of The St Regis New York by the Astor family, the St Regis brand incorporates rich traditions into every aspect of customer service, from its century-old butler service to the tradition of fresh flowers in every room.
Today, St Regis hotels and resorts can be found across the globe, including landmark hotels in London, New York, Singapore, Bali and soon in Qatar.