Seda Ayala Center Cebu introduces new Assistant Director for Sales

IRENE SINO-CRUZ

Seda Ayala Center Cebu has welcomed a new Assistant Director for Sales. With over eight years of professional experience and exposure to different responsibilities in both Tourism and Hospitality Management sectors, James Mc Jel Lota is expected to further boost the hotel’s occupancy and attract more companies and individuals to hold their events at the hotel.

James is no stranger to Seda Ayala since he had been the hotel’s events manager from October 2018 to June 2021. His return to the hotel is like a homecoming.

“Seda feels like home,” he shared. “I am very honored and happy to be back.”

His career in the travel and hospitality industry started way back in 2012 as a travel consultant for Travelite Travel & Tours. He then joined as events coordinator and eventually promoted as Sales Executive of then Cebu City Marriott Hotel. In 2018, he built his own events company, The Wedding Factory Concepts and Events.

Banking on his expertise in both sales and events, James hopes to further increase the hotel’s occupancy as well as bring back the pre-pandemic days when Seda Ayala Center Cebu was one of the leading venues for meetings, conferences and events.

Since the hotel is a popular business and social hub, it caters to a diverse guest profile both domestic and international, he said. Before the pandemic occurred, some of the hotel’s guests were Chinese, Koreans and Japanese business travelers, who are expected to return in pre-pandemic numbers with the lifting of travel bans and the resumption of international flights.

As part of the hotel’s marketing strategy, James said they are now further intensifying social media presence. He and his team are now doing sales calls and visits as they want to get in touch with their clients and inform them that the hotel is now ready for them.

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Seda Ayala Center Cebu Assistant Director for Sales James Mc Jel Lota

As the situation transitions to the new normal, Seda Ayala Center Cebu is experiencing increased demands in both corporate and leisure stays. Also, events are coming back. Even as early as May, the team is also experiencing a lot of inquiries, especially for the Christmas season, he added.

“Since May or around first week of June, we have at least one or two events every day from board meetings of 10 to a social gathering of 200 persons. Most of the time, these events are coming from our partners in the corporate and government agencies” James said.

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Seda Ayala Center Cebu Assistant Director for Sales James Mc Jel Lota (center) flanked by Seda Ayala Center Cebu General Manager Ms. Gwen Dela Cruz and Ms. Gia Mayola, Marketing Communications Officer

“We’re back. We want to move forward from the pandemic. It has been 2 years already and we want to show that in spite of and despite these unprecedented times, our relationship with our clients has always stayed the same. We are excited to welcome our guests back in the hotel.” James added.

Since their guests’ safety and security is of utmost importance, James ensures that the whole team strictly abides the current health protocols.

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He also shared that there are still clients who are hesitant to go out. “We are still following the IATF health protocols. We want to show them that the hotel and staff are well equipped to handle minimum health protocols in the guest and function rooms.”

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Meanwhile, Seda Ayala Center Cebu continues to offer promos for its clients. One of these is the Seda Drinks of the Month.

For the month of July 2022, Seda’s Drinks of the Season is available during from 2:00 pm – 10:0 pm, and is available for a Buy One, Get One promo during the Happy Hour from 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm. at P350 each.

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