TRENDING
HOTELS HONORS 2018 AWARD WINNERS PHILIPPE LEBOEUF AND JAY SHAH .
By JEFF WEINSTEIN , EDITOR IN CHIEF
HOTELS honored its 2018 Hoteliers of the World award winners in a November celebration at the Lotte New York Palace . Along with friends , family , past winners and other hoteliers , the event acknowledged the contributions of Corporate Hotelier of the World Jay Shah of Hersha Hospitality Trust , Philadelphia , and Independent Hotelier of the World Philippe Leboeuf , general manager and areas vice president of operations for the Mandarin Oriental , Paris .
Nearly the first words from Shah ’ s lips during his acceptance speech referred to his mother and father , Hersha and Hasu , who started the family hotel business in 1978 . He also spoke eloquently about how hotels provide a powerful platform to foster inclusiveness and community . “ It spans cultures , nationalities , religion and points of view ,” he said . “ The hotel industry celebrates this every day .”
Leboeuf dedicated his award to his late mother , Maud — the one , he said , who wanted a better life for her son and decided to send him from their small hometown in the Alsace region of France to the city of Strasbourg for university and hospitality training . “ That was the best thing that ever happened to me ,” he said .
The presentation and reception was sponsored in part by Protect-A-Bed and The Wall Street Journal .
elebrating
HOTELIERS
12 hotelsmag . com January / February 2019