THE LEGEND
Amanpuri , in Phuket , Thailand : Zecha ’ s first impression of the place , that it was a “ bit sinister ,” was erased when he discovered the beach view .
them . “ Wives are more practical .”) It took two years to find that property , through another connection , an old friend who was a cousin of Thailand ’ s former king . Zecha ’ s first impression was that it was pretty , but a “ bit sinister .” A walk up a steep incline showed him the beach view that snapped the vision into place .
“ I had to buy it piece by piece , by piece , by piece ,” he remembers . That took another few years , but when he proposed building a few more vacation homes on the property , he got takers immediately among his friends .
He figured that if they built homes , his long-distance friends would want him to look after them . “ So , why don ’ t I build a little club here ?,” he says . “ Then I said , why a club ? Why not a little hotel ? I am not in the hotel business , so why not ?”
That , simply , was the genesis of Aman . “ Not a farsighted view of oh , my God , I can do something ( to make a difference in ) the industry ,” Zecha says . “ That is all fucking bullshit . I ’ m an ex-journalist , don ’ t forget . I hate exaggeration of any kind .” Eventually there were 19 Aman owners . “ That was the luck part , but it required energy to actually put the whole deal together ,” which took several more years , he says .
Zecha describes himself as “ the luckiest guy in the world .” But when you get lucky , he says , “ you have to work .”
18 hotelsmag . com April 2019