Seymour Hotels Centenary Magazine SPREADS - Flipbook - Page 52
BORN TO HOST
"Becoming a hotelier was more
a process of osmosis for me"
G
BORN TO HOST
Speaking to Seymour Hotel Group's
Managing Director David Seymour,
we discover why joining the family
firm was inevitable.
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rowing up with his family in the Management flat at
Hotel de la Plage and later in the family house, dinner
conversations often referenced hotel life, challenges
and opportunities. Whether walking to visit his mother Rita’s
office after school in the Housekeeping and Maintenance
support office in James Road, or to his father Robin’s
Management office behind the Pomme d’Or hotel in Wharf
Street, David absorbed daily life within the Seymour group.
Retired long-serving staff smile affectionately when
remembering the small boy, then knee high to a grasshopper,
who would stop, chat and laugh with them.
Happiest memories for David are of the Merton Hotel’s
six o’clock swimming club & gala afternoons at the Merton
pool, where guests would have organised pillow fights on the
infamous slippery pole and race up and down the length of
the pool in tin bathtubs wearing fancy dress! The Seymour
spirit of hospitality was instilled into David from a young age
and his joining of the family firm was inevitable.
Inevitable but not a shoe-in. Every generation of the
Seymour family that has worked within the business has
rightly earned his or her place.
From his first role, aged 11 as
Junior Page Boy at Hotel de la Plage,
to summer seasons as Hall Porter
at the Pomme d’Or Hotel, David
gained valuable work experience
in the business. Working as general
assistant at the Portelet Hotel under
Mr Antonio (Tony) Asta cemented
David’s desire to make this his career.
“Tony’s enthusiasm, guidance and
professionalism inspired me to take
things further.”
Believing that the future of the
family business would need, and benefit from, a different
outlook and approach, David was encouraged by his father
to take up a place at Surrey University to study for a BSc
Hons in Hotel, Catering and Tourism Administration rather
than follow the more traditional hospitality craft route to
Lausanne, Alma Mater to David’s father, Aunts and Uncles.
David graduated and gained valuable career experience
working with Thorn EMI Leisure (Hotels & Restaurants)
in the UK as well as with Hotel Castille in Rue Cambon,
Paris. Joining the family business as full time employee in
1981, David spent 18 months working hard to understand
all aspects of the firm. Comprising at the time of five hotels,
a car hire and coach company, a direct-sell inbound tour
operation, a laundry and an in-house maintenance division,
no two days were the same. The thriving and varied nature of
the operation was both challenging and exciting.
David’s tenure as Marketing Director for 15 years, then
Managing Director since his appointment in 1996 when
Robin retired, has seen significant change within both
the industry and the Seymour business. Early initiatives
including computerisation of the hotels’ manual reservations
and accounting systems and a comprehensive review of
the Group’s marketing activities saw David put in place
relationships and strategies that would help the business
weather a period of rapid change in the fortunes of Jersey’s
tourism sector.
These strategies were underpinned by a relentless
programme of acquisition, investment and improvements,
only punctured by economic recession or world events like
9/11, ensuring Seymour Hotels kept pace with the changing
needs and requirements of hotel guests and visitors to the
Island.
From developing the Merton Aquadome & Leisure Club
(which introduced the first Flowrider in the UK) and
acquisition of the Watersplash Beach Bar, Diner & Nightclub
to purchasing the Greenhills Country House Hotel, creation
of the 28 self-catering Merton Suites and conversion of
Residence de la Plage to apartments, Seymour Hotels has
maintained its position as the leading hospitality group on
the Island.
Such change and continued pressure of investment
doesn’t make for an easy ride. “Life in Jersey as a hotelier has
changed enormously” explains David. “It’s no longer good
enough to just epitomise the romantic notions of ‘mine
host’. To succeed today, a whole new level of knowledge,
experience and professionalism is
required. The bureaucracy, legislation
and paperwork behind the scenes
is staggering. Within Seymours, we
are lucky because we can spread the
load across our departments, but the
responsibilities each individual now
faces are great. Hospitality and service
will always remain at our core, but
we also recognise and invest in the
additional management and strategic
skills that you need to future proof
the business.”
For many, the mounting pressure to stay one step ahead
would be a pressure too great to bear. Not for David. Born
into a life of hospitality, surrounded by passionate and great
people having fun, embodying the spirit of entrepreneurship
and an awe-inspiring tenacity to rise from the ashes, means
he’s made of stronger stuff. “Creating moments of magic for
other people and being rewarded with smiles from guests &
staff gives me a daily shot in the arm to face any challenge
head on.”
Working with family, living and breathing your business
24-7 would, for some, be claustrophobic. David sees it
differently. With three generations actively involved in the
business, the senior members are akin to built-in consultants,
imparting their knowledge and vast experience whilst the
younger members bring a new perspective. “Keeping shop
talk away from the dinner table is a challenge,” smiles David
“but it’s in these moments, when we are around the table
passionately sharing our dreams and hopes and debating
options, that we drive the business forward.”
Yes, David has learned his craft and earned his stripes. But
being born into a life of hospitality, exposed to the Seymour
spirit from day one, is what has made the difference; made
him the respected hotelier he is today. And it’s what will
keep Seymour Hotels leading the charge in Jersey’s tourism
industry for the next 100 years.
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