Fumihiko Kitakuni - Asistant Director of Sales
Hotel Nikko Kuala Lumpur is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Fumihiko Kitakuni as the new Assistant Director of Sales. With this post, Kitakuni is responsible in ensuring the continuous growth of Japanese accounts for Hotel Nikko Kuala Lumpur as well as establishing and maintaining good rapport with the Japanese guests, locally and internationally apart from assisting the Director of Sales (Japanese Accounts) in the day-to-day management of the Hotel’s Japanese business.
Kitakuni joined Hotel Nikko Kuala Lumpur in January 2008 and has held a number of senior positions overseas in Japan, Germany and Hong Kong. He started his career in hospitality industry in 1988 with the Hotel Nikko Osaka, Japan where he had the opportunity to work in various departments such as the Rooms Division and Food & Beverage. Within two years of his attachment, Kitakuni was promoted to Nikko’s Head Office in Tokyo, as one of the team members in the Sales & Marketing division.
In 1992, he was transferred to the Hotel Nikko San Francisco, United States of America. Two years later, he moved back to his homeland to take up his new posting in Hotel Nikko Princess Kyoto where he headed the Rooms Division. In 1995, Kitakuni joined the Hotel Nikko Saipan in Micronesia as a Sales Reservation Manager. With his diverse experience in the various divisions in the hospitality industry, Kitakuni was subsequently promoted as Director of Japanese Sales at the Hotel Nikko Dusseldorf, Germany in 2004. His most recent position before joining Hotel Nikko Kuala Lumpur was with the Hotel Nikko Hong Kong where he was in charged of managing the Japanese accounts since 2005.
Fumihiko Kitakuni hails all the way from Nagako-Ken, Japan. He holds a Bachelor Degree in Economics from Meiji University, Japan and is married with two children.
Head Chef Shinzato Masayoshi - Benkay Japanese Restaurant
Chef Shinzato Masayoshi is the new Japanese Head Chef of Benkay Japanese Restaurant, Hotel Nikko Kuala Lumpur’s award-winning restaurant. Chef Shinzato hails from Okinawa, Japan and obtained a qualification in Master of Cooking in Osaka, Japan in year 1972.
Chef Shinzato has made his mark in the hospitality industry for almost 38 years, with numerous attachments in both restaurants and hotels worldwide. He began his humble career as a ‘Teppanyaki’ Chef in a Japanese restaurant before moving over to the Miyuki Beach Hotel Japan, overseeing the Tempura kitchen. In 1995, Chef Shinzato joined Hotel Nikko Dusseldorf in Germany as the Chef in the Benkay Japanese Restaurant.
Chef Shinzato joined the Hotel Nikko Hanoi, Vietnam in 1998 as part of the Hotel’s pre-opening team as the Japanese Restaurant Chef. Between 2000 to 2005, he was attached with numerous hotels in different parts of the world under the Nikko Hotels International group. His impressive portfolio includes appointments with the Hotel Nikko Saipan (United States of Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands) and Hotel Nikko Royal Lake Yangon (Myanmar).
His last attachment was with Asahi Sushi Restaurant in Hanoi.
His current responsibilities include overseeing Benkay’s kitchen department manned by a team of 11; preparation of all Japanese dishes for Benkay Japanese Restaurant, Café Serena Brasserie and banquet functions.
Nikko Hotels International is an international luxury hotel group operated by JAL Hotels Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Japan Airlines, headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. In addition to Nikko Hotels International, JAL Hotels also operates Hotel JAL City, a chain of 14 mid--priced hotels for business travelers in Japan. As of October, 2007, JAL Hotels Co. Ltd has 65 hotels with 21, 029 rooms worldwide, in Europe, the Middle East, the Americas and throughout the Japan and the Asia Pacific region.
Last year, the company opened the 171-room Hotel Nikko Northland Obihiro on April 1st, the 373-room Hotel Nikko Tianjin in Tianjin, China on April 11th and the 257-room hotel JAL Fujairah Resort & Spa, a five-star Nikko Hotels International property in Fujairah, on May 15th. Future openings include the 478-room Hotel JAL Tower , Dubai, also a member of the Nikko Hotels group, in Dubai, UAE, in 2008, and the 300-room Hotel JAL Bahrain Resort & Spa, a Nikko Hotels International property, in 2009.
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