VENUE NEWS

The Capital Pearls appoints Logan Naidoo as hotel group’s youngest GM

Logan Naidoo, 34, has been appointed general manager of The Capital Pearls in Umhlanga, with Naidoo moving back to the property where he was assistant general manager previously after a stint as general manager of the group’s hotel in Rosebank, Johannesburg.

He is the youngest general manager in the group and his fitting into this role has been inspired by The Capital Hotels and Apartments’ investment in its people, and its entrepreneurship-focused growth strategy. Mr Naidoo joined the hotel group at The Capital Pearls, in 2017, as its Banqueting Manager, setting an incredible pace and exceeding all budgets and expectations in his first few months at the property.

He complemented his passions for hospitality and servant leadership by taking advantage of the multiple training opportunities offered by The Capital Hotels and Apartments, including the group’s Generic Management Course.

His first big move arrived in late 2018, when he was promoted to deputy general manager of The Capital Pearls, when he fully embraced the group’s entrepreneurial approach, including its staff-oriented ethos in all interactions.

With his personal motto being ‘deliver to your staff what you expect from your boss’, his approach saw The Capital Pearls have a successful 2019 festive season – paving the way for his move to The Capital on Bath in Johannesburg.

His astute approach to hospitality saw this hotel enjoy an eighty per cent occupancy during the Covid-19 riskadjusted lockdown, and combined with his leadership, during one of the toughest periods in the group’s history, were the impetus behind him being asked to return to The Capital Pearls as general manager to lead it through the 2020 festive season and beyond.

“The Capital Apartments and Hotels believes in developing our future stars from within our own teams, and therefore we offer extensive training and work experience opportunities, whether they’re aligned to a person’s current role or not.

“This means that everyone – irrespective what their job is – is able to make and take the opportunity to develop their skills and advance into new roles, and Logan is a wonderful example of the success of this approach,” said John Skelton, chief of people and culture of The Capital Apartments and Hotels.

Logan Naidoo