HOTELIER ’ S LIFE
MARCO NOVELLA
MANAGING DIRECTOR THE LANESBOROUGH , LONDON
Milan native Marco Novella joined Oetker Collection ’ s Lanesborough in August , succeeding decorated hotelier Geoffrey Gelardi . His formidable résumé includes stints at Rome ’ s St . Regis Grand , Hotel de Paris Monte-Carlo and Venice ’ s Gritti Palace .
What ’ s changing the luxury experience for your guests ?
It is definitely technology . It is definitely the availability in terms of time . It ’ s their time – it ’ s not our time anymore . It ’ s their time , when they want it , when they expect it … They will hardly compromise on service .
You ’ re paying attention to F & B .
I dine out maybe five nights in the week , and I always try new places . I ' m always eager to see how a new chef is doing or to see a new design to see how people react to it .
How do you manage younger employees ?
You engage them on a different level . You have to be a bit more playful , a bit more fun . You have to give them a lot of space . So one of the things I ’ m doing is to really involve them in almost any decision process , rather than just impose on them things to do . You have to give them sort of a freedom to move . ( With more than 300 employees ), I spend a lot of time with the team .
How has the GM ’ s role changed ?
I think they need to see you as part of the team , rather than just someone who tells them what to do . So rather than building barriers , you need to make them feel like they are an important part of the story .
Any advice for young hoteliers ?
Don ' t start here unless you are very motivated !... You don ' t work in hospitality for the salary . I think hospitality at this level is something else . You must have a passion for people . You must have a passion for service . You must have a passion for what you do . If you ' re a great chef or a great cook , it doesn ' t matter what style of food you cook , but you put yourself into it for eight hours a day , 10 hours a day .
How do you stay inspired ?
I travel . I meet people , I engage with people . I like people to have the sparkle in the eyes and that you can see that they have interesting stories to tell . Personally , I don ' t just focus on the hotel life and on the hotel business . I think there is so much that we hoteliers can learn looking outside of our industry .
Any important lessons learned ?
( At the Hotel de Paris ), exactly 20 years ago , I was looking at all the beautiful cars driving around the square and all these massive Ferraris , Lamborghinis , Rolls Royces – and all you could see is very casually dressed people getting out of these cars … And I learned , never judge a book by the cover . You never knew who was driving the Ferrari .
64 hotelsmag . com November 2018