“Being a local adds an emotional connection to my Bavarian colleagues, as well as clients,” said Dominik Reiner, GM of Mandarin Oriental Munich, the capital of the State of Bavaria, Germany, who is a native with a family who has been there for several generations.
In normal times, the 73-room hotel has a workforce of 185, of whom 80% are from Bavaria, which has a population of 13 million, almost as many as Austria and Switzerland combined. Unusually for Germany, known for formality to such a degree that in some hotels people can work together for decades without knowing, let alone using, first names, Reiner is ‘Dominik’ to all and sundry – though some long-timers had an initial hesitation when he was appointed March 2018.
The hotel is center-city, right next to the world-famous Hofbrauhaus and within a few minutes’ walk of dozens of other historic bars and restaurants. Its own outlets, which include a must-reserve-early Matsuhisa, more than hold their own in this dining environment. “Ninety percent of customers in our restaurants and bars are from Munich, so I get to know a lot of locals,” he said. “It is sometimes difficult to be anonymous when I go out. On monthly date nights, with my wife, I can be absolutely certain that I will know at least one other diner.”
Yes, Reiner said, his team is very Bavarian. “Our four Bavarian concierges intimately know our world-famous exotic castles through years of unique detailed knowledge. They recommend things they would do with their own families and I sometimes suggest what I would do with my daughters,” he shared, adding that having such a local team could lead to a challenge to look more globally. “Had I not worked abroad for over seven years, in Boston and London, my outlook would have been narrower.”
His father hoped Dominik, eldest of his three sons, would follow his medical footsteps, but he wanted something that was more directly customer-focused. He joined Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group as a management trainee. He took time out for studies at The International School of Management, Dortmund, Germany, and RMIT in Melbourne, Australia, and short courses in Hawaii and New Zealand, but otherwise he has always been in the luxury hotel sector.
Apart from a spell at Soho House in Berlin he has been with MOHG his entire professional career, though he says his 18 months as first-time GM with Soho House enhanced his value of integrating with the local market. “I have since used the experience in Berlin to give Mandarin Oriental Munich a hint of the private club-feel.” Before the current lockdown, more than one 20-something fashion-inclined Munich woman would often use the hotel’s champagne-colored first floor lobby lounge as a co-working venue.
Yes, Mandarin Oriental Munich, which is 100% owned by MOHG, is once again in open-ended lockdown, with a complete city-wide curfew from 9 p.m. It can legally host business and medical travel (current occupancy is between 10% and 15%).
Particularly frustrating for an enthusiastic GM who came up the F&B ladder, in-room dining is the only current on-site dining option.
Once again, as through all lock-downs, the Mandarin Oriental Munich food truck, parked outside the hotel’s main door, has been a day-time mainstay for many home-bound gourmets (best-sellers have been California hand-roll).
The hotel’s five-strong sales and marketing team has been busily connecting with regular hotel guests, who include many Germans and other Europeans coming not only for the lure of the city but to pick-up pre-ordered Audi and BMW vehicles from their respective factories. “Germans love their cars, and driving fast on autobahns,” Reiner explained.