The HoteliersGuild International Hall of Fame | Villa Padierna Palace Hotel, Marbella, Spain

PRESERVING HISTORY

HONORING EXCELLENCE

CONNECTING GENERATIONS

DIGNITY and HONOUR: Where Legends Find Their Place

In October 2016, amidst the grandeur of the Palacio Linares at the Villa Padierna Palace Hotel in Marbella, Spain, a distinguished gathering of over 200 leaders from the global luxury hospitality sector convened on the 14th and 15th to inaugurate the HoteliersGuild International Hall of Fame.

The inception of the HoteliersGuild International Hall of Fame was a momentous occasion, marking our commitment to celebrate excellence within our industry. It stands as a testament to the individuals who have made remarkable contributions to the worldwide luxury lifestyle, serving as a wellspring of inspiration and knowledge for a new generation of hoteliers and hospitality professionals.

The gracious gesture of Ricardo Arranz de Miguel, owner of Villa Padierna Hotels & Resorts and a dedicated trustee of HoteliersGuild, and his esteemed spouse, Alicia, Marquesa of Villapadierna, to provide their Palacio Linares as the preeminent physical location for the International Hall of Fame for our industry was truly benevolent. Indeed, there exists no more fitting location in the world for such a noble institution. We hold our industry and its leaders in the highest regard, and we are now fortunate to possess an elegant setting to pay homage to some of our most exceptional colleagues. The inaugural class of 2016 inductees comprised luminaries, both historical figures like Cesar Ritz and Bill Marriott, and contemporary icons of Luxury Hospitality, including the incomparable Sol Kerzner, Natale Rusconi, Phillipe Starck, and Peter Borer. These esteemed individuals are forever immortalized through oil portraits and concise biographies elegantly engraved on silver plaques, which grace the halls in perpetuity. We extend our deepest gratitude for the unwavering support of our esteemed Board of Governors and the many established colleagues and companies within the luxury hospitality industry. Your backing is a source of great honor for us, and we express our heartfelt thanks.

ME SS AGE

Frank M. Pfaler Founder President HoteliersGuild

TO Our gracious Hosts

GR ATE FUL

We are expressing our gratitude to Don Ricardo Arranz de Miguel, owner of Villa Padierna Hotels & Resorts and Honourable Chairman and 1st. Custodian of HGIHOF, and to his wife, Dña. Alicia Padierna

Countess de Villapadierna - Klein for their gracious hospitality and unwavering support.

IN AU GU ATE

INAUGURATION at the Palacio Linares

The official

by from

and the exclusive private

by from

Isabel

ceremony

left to right: Filip Boyen, CEO,Small Luxury Hotels; Princess Bhargavi Mewar from The House of Mewar, Executive Director of HRH Hotels; Frank M. Pfaller, President HoteliersGuild Hall of Fame and Ece Vahapoglu.

event

left to right: Frank M. Pfaller; Miguel Briones Artacho – Subdelegado del Gobierno; Ricardo Arranz, President of Villa Padierna Hotels;

Borrego Cortes, Secretaria de Estado de Turismo; Margarita del Cid, Presidenta Mancomunidad

Elias Bendodo Presidente Diputación Málaga

Palacio Linares at the Villa Padierna Palace Hotel

is the perfect location to envelope and to uphold their legacy with their portraits painted in oil and memorabilia of accoladed winners.

It also has the air and all the right elements to ensure a unique and glamorous experience for discerning guests and visitors from around the world.

CE LEB RATE

The One&Only Sol Kerzner accepting the Lifetime Achievement Award

Palacio Linares at

HALL OF FAME

LAU RE ATES

THE PA RTY

Presenting our Board of Governors

GOV ER NO RS

President

Frank M. Pfaller CoutureHospitalityConcept

Chairman & Custodian

Ricardo Arranz de Miguel President, Villa Padierna Hotels & Resorts

Joseph Chong

Managing Director, Peninsula Shanghai

Thomas Bühner

CEO, The Chefs Academy

Beat Sigg

CEO, Victoria-Jungfrau-Collection

Valeriano Antonioli

CEO, Lungarno Collection

Lindsey Ueberroth

President, Preferred Hotel Group

Michael Smithuis

General Manager Fairmont Le Montreux Palace

Ingo Peters

Regional VP & GM Fairmont Vierjahreszeiten

Duncan Palmer

Managing Director, The Murray, HongKong

Sandro Fabris

General Manager, Half Moon Bay Montego Bay

OnnoPoortier

itMustBeNOOW! Co-Founder & Chairman

Pfaller

Arranz Chairman & Custodian President of Villa Padierna Group

Palmer

Fabris

IN DUC TEES

Dear Frank,

It is with the greatest honour and delight that accept the prestigious “Industry Legend” award from TIHOF.

My time in the hospitality industry, of over 50 years, has been made more remarkable by the huge pool of talented and passionate individuals that have had the privilege and pleasure of working with across the globe. It is a unifying industry in so many respects and one in which am proud to have made a contribution.

Warmest personal regards, Sol Sol Kerzner

Dear Mr. Pfaller,

am deeply honoured that your Board has voted me as an inductee for the International Hospitality Hall of Fame and that I will be presented with a “Signum Vertutis”, the most exclusive award in the luxury hospitality industry. This nomination not only concludes in glory my long career in the luxury hotel business, but also gives me the assurance that my work and its philosophy will be transmitted to the young generations who will choose one of the most satisfactory careers, which on a human scale allows them to meet many interesting and diversified characters and which in many cases enables them to make people happy as well. also believe that the mission of a General Manager is to include the staff members, who are the motor of a hotel. The future of the hotel industry is especially nowadays under scrutiny by many observers. I personally believe that with the merging of chains such as Marriott and Starwood, there will be soon a great division between machine hotels and boutique hotels. was in fact employed as Assistant Manager at the Gritti Palace Hotel in Venice, which had been previously the annex of the nearby Grand Hotel, in the early ’50’s. With the Gritti, CIGA Hotels created the first de luxe boutique hotel in Italy, and that was my school. Also the Cipriani, with less than 100 rooms, is considered still now to be a boutique hotel, as are many others of the Belmond group, formerly Orient-Exress Hotels, of which was the Italian Vice President.

thank you for the honour given me and look forward to seeing you soon in Marbella. As far as Jim Sherwood is concerned, he will be in Venice this coming Saturday, and will speak with him about the Hall of Fame celebration in Marbella.

Sincerely, Natale Rusconini

Dear Frank,

It is with great pride for me to be inducted into the International Hospitality Hall of Fame. When Eva and first started, we had no idea our personal vision of a locally crafted villa and environmentally responsible lifestyle would form the basis of a successful collection of worldclass resorts.

We started a trend for back-to-nature luxury holidays, and watched the Maldives turn from a three-star high volume destination into the luxury destination it is today. At Soneva, we strive to “inspire a lifetime of rare experiences”. This started with our now ubiquitous chocolate, ice cream, cheese and charcuterie rooms, followed by the outdoor Cinema Paradiso, our observatories, and now our glass studio at Soneva Fushi, among many other things. We hope that as we continue to grow, we will continue to inspire the international tourism industry to integrate luxury with sustainability, as these two things do not compete – they actually complement each other. While am proud of what we have accomplished, there is much more that we, not only as a company but as an industry, can do to improve the communities in which we operate.

With warmest regards, Sonu Sonu Shivdasani Chairman & CEO SONEVA

Dear Frank,

When I received word to be included in the International Hospitality Hall of Fame, you put me in the right mood - 'Down Memory Lane'. My private and professional life was scripted by'follow your heart' and several mentors who were always present like Guardian Angels.

The early trails of my personal life began in 1960, as if written in Folks Tales, young German - hotelier-to-be, met and fell in love with a Thai student in Lausanne. She returned to her homeland, found him a job at a little seaside inn in Thailand - early assimilation into Thai culture, two years later they moved to the Oriental in Bangkok. Today, we are married fifty years with three wonderful children. A real love story!

In the early seventies, the Thai owners decided to enlarge the Oriental to 400 rooms, requiring a Management Company. The obvious choice was the Mandarin in Hong Kong and the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group was born.

Peter Stafford was the General Manager of the Mandarin Hong Kong and he took it upon himself to train hundreds of Oriental employees from one to six months in Hong Kong. As for myself, I was dispatched to the Savoy in London for one month...polishing my manners!

Highlights over the past forty years

The Oriental Hotel Apprentice Programme was set up

The Professional Thai Chef Programme

The South East Asia Writers Award to honour the many famous writers who stayed over the years.

The nostalgic Legends of Indochina

ACC EPT ANC ES

Dear Frank

am deeply honoured to have this prestigious award bestowed upon me.

am sharing this accolade with many people who have and continue to inspire me.

It has been and continues to be a great privilege to work in the hospitality industry. An industry which unites people from all over the world

Kind regards,

Peter Peter Borer COO

The Peninsula Hotels

Dear Frank,

It is with great pride that we accept your invitation for us to be inducted into The International Hospitality Hall of Fame. Both our careers have been entirely in some part of the hospitality industry – travel agent, tour operator, incentive travel, airline, People to People Travel and now Preferred Hotels and Resorts. This industry is one that brings the world together and has been part of many innovations and programs that other industries adapt. To be thought of as a leader of this fabulous and growing industry is indeed an honor that we will cherish.

Our warmest personal regards!

John and Gail

John & Gail Ueberroth

Founders, Preferred Hotels & Resorts

Dear Frank,

'I would like to formally accept this induction into the International Hospitality Hall of Fame and to sincerely thank the Board of Advisors for their support and votes. It is an honour to be recognised alongside so many exceptional individuals and am proud to have contributed to the hospitality industry for so many years.’

My best regards, Geoffrey

Geoffrey Gelardi Managing Director

The Royal Project in Chiengmai where our Chef, Norbert Kostner, introduced new varieties of vegetables and fruits, which were imported at high cost from Europe - not an easy task to reproduce in tropical climate. Today, most hotels/restaurants all over Thailand recognize real value in this brand. Whatever we undertook, we tried to connect these stories with a society who surrounded us and ultimately became our loyal customers.

Most of the 1200 staff members dedicated their services an entire life to the Oriental, which allowed us to maintain and nourish a personalized service. Because of the close relationship between our staff and guests - guests felt at home.

When the Oriental was named for the first time 'Best Hotel in the World', the Thai employees lifted glasses of champagne for a photo shoot and a few minutes later, returned to their work place, continued their jobs as diligently like as if nothing has happened.

Thais display a great sense of humanity, supporting each other, whenever the unexpected occurs.

In the end - what is life? Warmth - and had plenty in both private and professional life!

Warm regards!

Kurt Kurt Wachtveitl

former General Manager of The Mandarin Oriental Hotel

HU GE THA NKS!