Cover story : Legends
en Rule , which comes with it the autonomy and responsibility to act in the guest ’ s best interest . That principle continues as the company grows , Smith says , because of “ culture carriers ,” longtime employees who move among the properties and instill the values . “ Every time we open a new hotel the vast majority are going to be new to Four Seasons , but the culture carriers transmit to those people what this means ,” he says .
As the company aims to add up to 30 properties by 2020 , that might be the secret to the Four Seasons ’ success in the markets it enters : exemplars of the tradition transmit the trust required to achieve unremittingly high expectations . “ People want it ,” Sharp says . “ People want the responsibility , and to prove it to you . When you give trust , people don ’ t want to let you down . They will find ways
to measure up .” It ’ s why the word family crops up again and again , and why Sharp still considers his company small . “ There are so many people who joined when they were very young , got married , had children , had a career ,” he says . “ That ’ s what family ’ s all about . I ’ m the godfather of an extended family , so to speak .”
Also a philosopher and rock star , says Norton . “ I ’ ve seen him with 600 people , electrifying the crowd ,” he says . “ We can all get hung up on one piece of our work , and I get that , but keeping it in perspective and keeping it in balance — he ’ s a great master at that .”
Always the founder Sharp sold a majority of his stake to Kingdom Holdings and Bill Gates ’ Cascade Investment in 2006 in a US $ 3.4 billion deal . He remains involved — not to make the deal “ but to help .” In his spare time he plays tennis and bridge .
He gestures to a pile of papers and files stacked on a table in an alcove of the dining room . ( His wife of six decades , Rosalie Wise Sharp , has converted the kitchen of their home to a studio for her painting .) “ I ’ m still doing what I did from day one , overseeing the concepts and aesthetics of everything that we ’ re building , as well as the aesthetics of existing hotels .”
His process is straightforward : “ We hire the world ’ s best consultants and designers . As long as you hire the person you trust , you ’ re relying upon their ideas . So the approval process is really tweaking the edges .”
Godfather , philosopher , rock star and ambassador for the hotels he still visits . “ As a founder , you really speak from a different pulpit than anybody else . I ’ ll play that role as long as I can .”
How do you treat your people tHrougH good and bad times ? You make
that statement more dramaticallY when things are not going well and You stick with Your principles .
22 HOTELS April 2016 www . hotelsmag . com