DFS Galleria rebrands as T Galleria

The worldwide rebranding of DFS Galleria into T Galleria by DFS Group officially hit the shores of Saipan in an event last Saturday with the dedication of the DFS-sponsored Tipiyeew Village’s ancient latte stone house and canoe house, as well as a visit from DFS CEO Philippe Schaus.

In an interview, Schaus said DFS has made sure to adapt their rebranding initiatives locally.

Gov. Eloy S. Inos presents DFS Group CEO Philippe Schaus with some local souvenirs at the DFS rebranding event last Saturday at the Tipiyeew Village in Garapan. (Dennis B. Chan)

“Each one is an individual rebranding, each one has an individual strategy,” Schaus said.

Along with their authentic, locally made “destination products” at every one of their locations, Schaus said DFS makes sure to invest in every destination on a community level as well.

“It is important for DFS that every destination we are present, we are part of that destination,” he said.

He noted how DFS has been on island for 38 years, even before Saipan became developed as a tourist destination, adding that their founders helped develop the airport to make it accessible for larger airplanes.

“’We are very much engrained on Saipan, it is part of our heritage and culture,” he said.

Schaus added that on top of their unique destination products they are also promoting Saipan abroad in their travel offices like in Hong Kong.

“Bring[ing] customers to Saipan has been a very important initiative for DFS over the last year,” he said.

Schaus said over the last five or six years there has been an evolution in the customer base as their predominantly Japanese customer base progressively moved into a mix of Japanese, Chinese, Korean, and Russian customers.

“In parallel to that, we have made our concept evolve to be more attractive to these new groups,” he said, as the “T” in T Galleria stands for “traveler” and is meant to evoke modern travel and simplicity.

“We realized that our customers our predominantly Asian. We felt that having a very simple name would be a big advantage. And what is simpler than having a one-letter name? Everybody can remember one letter,” he said

Tipiyeew Village

According to Marian Aldan-Pierce, president of DFS Saipan, the Tipiyeew Village project is collaboration between DFS and the Office of Carolinian Affairs.

She said DFS sponsored the building of the life-size ancient Chamorro latte stone house and Carolinian canoe house as their aim is to have a place where tourists and visitors can go for arts and culture.

“We want it to have a life on its own,” she said.

Part of the event last Saturday involved various booths showcasing salt-making, mwarmwar- weaving, and bead-making, which are activities she hopes the village will offer regularly.

She said a regular two-hour event on Fridays could become a “home” for cultural activities and traditional dancing and competitions.

“The location is perfect. It’s right in the heart of Garapan… You can have over a 1,000 people within 10 minutes of walking,” she said.

One of the showcases at Saturday’s event was the “T in Art” exhibition showcasing talents like Phillip Canuto, Ernie David, Gregg Elliot, Mike Finey, and Tim Deleon Guerrero.

The artists transformed a standing “T”-structure into works of their own design.

Finey, a wood carver, for example, carved flowers, dolphins, and turtles as well as a canoe-paddle, gluing them to his structure as part of a message of travel and good fortune.

On permanent display at a latte stone in the village is Robert Hunter’s painting of a beaming young girl holding a seashell to her ear.