‘It’s tough being a woman anywhere but I’m as good as anybody else’ *Feminine Flair

By Steve A. Morrell

Shiromal Cooray is identified as a ‘Group of 50’ member. We could describe this group as comprising those with outstanding expertise and skill in guiding the destinies of business conglomerates.

Stemming from the ‘ECHELON’ magazine’s tribute to 50 outstanding women, what follows is an exclusive interview The Island Financial Review had with Shiromal Cooray.

Cooray said, ‘ I have been fortunate. Our’s is a family business. The God I worship has been good to me. I’m a practising Catholic. What more could I want? I’m not afraid to make decisions and move forward.’

Excerpts:

FR: ‘Ceylon’, a huge powerful brand. ‘Ceylon Tea and ‘Ceylon Tourism, ‘ what do you think?

SC. Yes. It’s an excellent concept. Tea and tourism, gems and tourism; we have to get these linkages.

FR. Any moves on, say, tea and tourism?

SC. We use the tea in our…

FR. No. No. No. That’s not what I meant. We’re looking at togetherness of both industries. Can you come together and project an image, the brand. Ceylon?’

SC. Excellent idea. That’s what we should be thinking about. Sri Lanka, Ceylon, whichever way you look at it, that’s what it should be. But if I might add, we have to get our act together.

FR. How were you identified to be one of the ’50’, group, of most powerful women?

SC. How would I know? I was asked, and I said OK. That’s how.

FR. That’s it?

SC. The magazine did say they had stipulated some criteria. And I said OK.

FR . Travel, how powerful are you in the travel trade?

SC. Jet Wing as a company, we are fairly powerful. Our presence is felt in the Sri Lanka hospitality trade, for example, hotels, travel, both in bound and out bound, MICE, SC for airlines; in that sense we are fairly well spread out.

FR. You are an international brand, are you?

SC . That’s what we are hoping to be.

FR. You mean you’re not?

SC. I don’t know how one calls it an international brand. We are known in Europe, we are known here in Sri Lanka. All told, I guess you could call us International.

FR. Many hotels are coming up. In time you would not have people to man these hotels. How would you respond?

SC. As a hotelier, Jet wing always takes in people from the area. Our Yala hotel is one in point. People are coming back. The issue is that when others poach your people. Also we tend to settle for second best. Also agree that our hotel school trains only lower level people. Not those who could handle, say, a Shangrilla.

FR . Big difference between Singapore and Colombo, even Delhi for that matter. Why should it be so?

SC. It will improve. Agreed, the service will need to be improved.

FR. People prefer to go to the Maldives rather than come here. Why?

SC. No locals hassle tourist, no beach boys, romance of an Island. Undisturbed. Those who come here want to experience culture, wild life, it’s a different type of person who comes here.

Any traveler who comes here must have to abide by our rules. There are unique things we have. Our people, they make a difference. Friendly. Take what we have in Yala. You don’t get that isolation anywhere else you know.

FR. Has there ever been a time when all you travel agents have got together under one body.

SC . We have an association.

FR. Have you got together under one body?

SC. There is an association called Sri Lanka Association of Inbound Tour Operators. We do get together, but there are instances that we have our differences.

FR. The government treads on your toes?

SC. Yes. At times. No further comment.

FR. Opening your doors, are you still concentrating on Europe or moved away from Europe, the East perhaps? Looking at China, India?

SC. As a company we have spread ourselves quite broadly, but we certainly will not move away from Europe.

FR. Malaysia, we could not get anywhere near Malaysia. True? What have they got we don’t have.

SC. Take the hotels, they have 500 to 600 room hotels. Ours, just about 100 rooms. We are a small Island . There are also two star, three star hotels there. Also we can never have 20 or 30 million visitors they haveeach year. I don’t think we should compare ourselves with Malaysia. Mainly, we have to market ourselves. We are a different country now.

FR. How many people do you employ now?

SC, About two thousand

FR. Expanding?

SC. Yes. Yala is one, one in Colombo, next in Dambulla; we also have a finance company. We will be cautious though.

FR. Have I left out anything?

SC. Not really. You’ve done quite well, really.

FR. One more. As a woman. You can handle power. Comments?

SC. I’m as good or as bad as anybody else.

FR. Good talking to you.

SC. Likewise.

[Via The Island]