SPECIAL REPORT : HOTELIERS OF THE WORLD
At age 16 , Rafael began his career as a bellman in his native German hotels .
Japanese spa — unheard of then in Germany — and even added a ninehole pitch-and-putt golf course . Both were big successes and catapulted the hotel to the top of the market .
Perfect partners In 1972 , another one of his growing number of industry friends , Sigfried Beil , suggested to Bob Burns that
Rafael helped develop the Regent brand , which had one of its flagships in Hong Kong .
Rafael would be the perfect partner to open one of the biggest hotels in Hawaii and launch the Regent brand . “ I told him , ‘ I am your man to help build a company ,’” Rafael recalls of the Waikiki opening , which soon thereafter led to Regents in Fiji and Sydney . After Adrian Zecha joined the Regent team , Rafael moved to New York City in 1976 as executive vice president of Regent International Hotels and negotiated the acquisitions of hotels in New York ; Chicago ; Puerto Rico ; London ; Hawaii ; Dusseldorf , Germany ; Los Angeles ; Albuquerque , New Mexico ; and Washington , D . C .
The trio of what were to become hotel legends broke up in 1986 when Burns bought out Rafael and Zecha , who then became partners to start Rafael Hotels and the Aman brand . “ The amazing 17-year partnership of Georg Rafael , Adrian Zecha and founder Bob Burns of Regent International Hotels was an incredible collaboration of talent ,” Bickson adds . “ That all three have been acknowledged by their peers and HOTELS as Hoteliers of the World is in itself a tribute to their impact on travel and tourism for the past five decades .”
Unrelenting spirit During the subsequent 14 years or so , Rafael and Zecha built their luxury projects , starting with the first Aman in Phuket , Thailand , and including Rafael hotels such as The Mark in New York City , Hotel du Rhone in Geneva and The Rafael in Munich .
“ I think we could have conquered the world if the three of us had stayed together , but I have no regrets ,” Rafael says . “ We had camaraderie , high standards and it worked out fine . … Without Bob I would have never been on my own . Without Adrian , we would not have been able to build Rafael and Aman hotels together .”
Rafael sold his company to Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group in 2000 ( too soon , he says , in hindsight ) and remained to assist in its expansion until mid-2002 . At that point , he based his new organization in Monaco and advised for renowned hotel companies such as Taj Hotels and Orient-Express Hotels , where he was elected non-executive director in 2002 and today serves as vice chairman of the board . In addition , Rafael still has some business ventures together with Zecha .
During the past 20 years , Rafael also has been tending to a small patch of land in Napa , California . In 1996 he started Georg Rafael Vineyards , an exclusive boutique winery producing estate-bottled premium Cabernet and Chardonnay . Today , his one son , Mark — who is trying to convince his father to start a new hotel company with him — runs the vineyard . “ I will be his biggest supporter ,” Rafael says with a chuckle .
When reflecting further on his career , Rafael likes to talk about the hotel he built in Munich . “ It was an old building next to a parking garage , and I wanted to do a 5-star , 90-room luxury hotel ,” he says . “ No one could believe it , and guys in Germany told me I was crazy to it there . Eight years later I got a letter from the mayor of Munich paying respect to what I did to that part of Munich , turning it into something special .”
Something special is how Rafael describes his entire career , starting as a young boy “ coming from nowhere ” with challenges , struggles and ultimately opportunities . “ I must be the luckiest person in life to be able to live through my profession such an exciting and interesting life ,” Rafael says .
28 HOTELS November 2012 www . hotelsmag . com