GOSTELOW REPORT—“On Sunday, 1st November, I finally moved into my office. This was intentionally exactly a month before our scheduled re-opening on 1st December, but now we have a national lockdown starting this Thursday, so our launch is, as they say, up in the air,” says Aaron Kaupp, regional vice president London and general manager of Carlton Tower Jumeirah, London, which is now 187 rooms, including 87 suites.
This is a venerable hotel, which first opened in 1961 with a party for a thousand guests hosted by then-developers, Boston-based Hotel Corp. of America, which later become Sonesta. It was managed, at first, by Lex Group, out of the U.K., and then passed to Hyatt.
It has been 100% owned by Jumeirah’s parent, Dubai Holding, since 2001. The hotel closed quietly, for its complete re-do, on 2nd September, 2019. As a sign of current times, the new-look luxury hotel will throw its doors open in considerably less ostentatious style.
What will that new-look luxury look like? Well, take the minibar, which of course is not automatic. Apart from a few necessary generics, expect some of the finest examples of what Kaupp believes to be among the best biscuits (cookies) in the world.
“Although the selection will not be entirely from the U.K., we are looking for small manufacturers all over the country,” he said.
For months he has been working closely with the interior designers, London-based 1508, on subtle interior variations to cope with social distancing. “We want flexibility, and we need to anticipate post-COVID days when social distancing will be a thing of the past,” he said.
Regular guests will notice immediate changes – “check-in will be highly personalized.” Now, once in the main front door, reception is on the left, with concierges next to them. On the right of the main door, where reception used to stand, guest relations today occupies the stand-up counter.
As has been well documented, the 1961-vintage Rib Room restaurant has been discarded — some of its longest-tenured team members, say Filipina Mary Lou, who joined in 1985, took the opportunity to retire. That space is now going to be Al Mare, a Mediterranean seafood concept led by Mario Calenzo, formerly a Zuma head chef: Jumeirah CEO José Silva has personally conceived this new all-day outlet, working with his culinary guru, Michael Ellis.
Kaupp plans on opening with 212 full-time team members, dressed in 2020-style gear that deliberately does not say “uniform” – the GM, who spent a decade working in Italy followed by four years running Le Royal Monceau Raffles Paris, understands the essential importance of fashion.
“Throughout the entire hoteI I want casual-elegance couture for females, and sophisticated chic for their male counterparts, to blend not only with the surroundings but with younger-generation clients,” he explained.
To achieve his quota of team members, there is no shortage of applicants: Last month, in one week alone he had 7,874 resumés, which were sorted and scrutinized by a team of five.
“When we opened Armani Hotel Milano, above Giorgio Armani’s Milan headquarters, in 2011, we deliberately chose only those who had no hospitality experience. I quickly realized that was a mistake,” he recalled. “Hospitality is a labor of love with long hours, and in today’s environment I believe that personal character as well as a passion for hospitality are both vital.” Interestingly, he has so far only re-hired one person, a concierge who worked at the hotel some years ago.
All hires are on flexible contracts, which can be pushed back if the re-opening is delayed. “New-look luxury definitely requires flexibility,” Kaupp admitted ruefully.