SPECIAL REPORT
& Resorts , where he remained for six years . He credits that offer with his ability to build and maintain relationships in a relationship-driven industry .
“ Many of my journeys today actually started at The Carlyle ,” McBride says . As well as running the company ’ s Caribbean resorts , new seeds were planted when investor and entrepreneur Chris Burch checked in . “ I would watch him in the lobby and he would be the first to pick up the bags ,” Burch recalls . “ He was a doer .”
Burch himself was looking to move on and create what he called “ disruptive hotels ,” and he realized that he ’ d found the perfect partner in McBride . But it took a few years before the right project came up . At that point McBride had joined Malaysia-based YTL as president , developing resorts in Hokkaido , San Tropez and elsewhere . Burch told McBride about a tiny surf resort on Sumba , where he felt like he had stepped 500 years back in time . McBride wound up assisting Burch on its purchase and left YTL in 2012 to focus on it full time . ( In the meantime , he had joined the board of Zanadu , a Chinese travel website .) But something about Nihiwatu clicked .
CREATING THE VISION “ The vision ( Burch ) had for what it could be was correct , and his instincts were correct ,” says McBride , who became a minority and managing partner , with Burch fronting much of the money . The result : a cluster of 28 villas , along with surfing , “ spa safaris ,” horseback riding and a chocolate
The Sumbanese have been expert horsemen for several hundred years . McBride ( r .), an avid polo player , helped introduce the sport to the island .
factory that won Travel & Leisure ’ s 2016 award for best hotel on the planet .
McBride calls Singapore home base , but his breakneck travel schedule includes New York and scouting locations where the two can emulate the Nihi brand ’ s combination of luxury and local culture , in places like Sri Lanka , Mozambique and New Zealand . Plans include an all-inclusive , activity-oriented version that McBride describes as “ bohemian , fun and energetic .”
The T & L award means they ’ re getting a lot of pitches , as well . But Nihiwatu was another great risk , perhaps the greatest of his career . “ There were many times when I thought that I ’ d gone mad ,” McBride says . “ You kind of know what you ’ re doing , you know what the goal is , you know what you ’ re trying to achieve . But your peer group think you ’ ve gone mad .”
It ’ s a kind of madness that he ’ s unwilling to pass along to his teenaged son , who spent summers at Sumba and has said he wants to follow his parents into the hotel business ( McBride met his wife at Ritz-Carlton ; they ’ re now divorced ). “ He knows more about it then a lot of people because he ’ s been around it so long .”
He credits his parents , with whom he traveled from an early age , and his mother particularly as a role model on details and high standards .
“ I ’ ve been fortunate and successful in some things . I ’ ve always taken the road less traveled . I ’ m a risk taker . I ’ d rather ask for forgiveness then permission . And , you know , generally , it works .”
ON CUSTOMERS :
“ I engage right away . For me the customer experience is paramount . I ’ ll do whatever it takes for an extraordinary experience . And through this , it ’ s either right or wrong . There ’ s no gray . I don ’ t work in gray .”
HIS IDEA OF FUN :
“ Work extremely hard , have great discipline and focus , and have fun in what you ’ re doing . I always have fun . And if I ’ m not having fun , I ’ m not exhilarated by what I ’ m working on . It generally won ’ t be successful . If it becomes mundane , why do it ?”
HOW HE SCOUTS A LOCATION :
“ We go to the site , we may even sleep at the site in a tent for a few days and get the spiritual feeling of the area . We look at the topography , work with an architect , see where the sun sets , where the birds sing , where the whales can be seen .”
28 hotelsmag . com November 2016