With technology increasingly present in our lives, person-to-person treatment is a differential value for brands. Hospitality is at the center of conversations to create unique experiences. But what is hospitality? How important is it for brands? How is it applied in different industries? These are some of the topics that were discussed in this sixth talk of "Building futures" in La Roca Village.
On this occasion, Bibiana Ballbè moderated a talk attended by speakers to talk about hospitality from different industries: Lourdes Carbó, founder of Alberta LaGrup, a personal assistant company; Sergio Rodriguez, commercial director of CaixaBank Private Banking; Michael Cleaver, Director of Hospitality
After a reception with a welcome cocktail around the tea ceremony, Bibiana Ballbè opened the talk with a short definition of what hospitality is: "the act of being kind and welcoming to guests and visitors, cultivating the art of of small details and empathy.” Next, it was the turn of each speaker to explain her vision on this topic.
Michael Cleaver, from La Roca Village, gave a vision from the world of retail: “hospitality is the art of entertainment, we want to create experiences, and that is why hospitality is in the DNA of Value Retail at La Roca Village and The Bicester Collection”.
Lourdes Carbó gave her point of view as a company of personal assistants: "as personal assistants, who manage the lifestyle of very busy people, and with great wealth, we are hospitality in their own homes, in their own lives."
For Juan Medivilla, who has been in the restaurant world for more than 40 years: “Hospitality is more linked to sharing, and it is a social act. Receiving is welcoming someone who is strange to you, and it is an act of generosity. In the world of restoration there is something that is law: that the client returns. The figure of the host and empathy are key to that.”
Paco Caro spoke about what was important in organizing events: “It is making a person feel special, important and unique, through prior knowledge. The secret for the client to come back is to gain their trust. ”
Svetlana Velikanova co-founder of Harbor Space, a university that wants to revolutionize the world of education through new programs: “Our students arrive at the age of 18, and they come with many expectations. They learn to live in freedom, they have the challenge of moving from adolescence to the world of work, and to train as great professionals in a foreign city. We have to help them create a home away from home. For this reason, we have created a special subject for them to understand and make the city of Barcelona their own”.
Sergio Rodríguez, who represented CaixaBank Private Banking, humorously said that he was surprised that a bank was taken into account in a talk about empathy and hospitality. He remarked that “when we work with estates we have to have a great deal of empathy. Hospitality begins with the warmth and proactivity of contact. It is important that the customer repeat, but the prescription is also very important, the prescriber is a satisfied customer.”
Elena Foguet, Business Director of La Roca Village, wanted to emphasize that hospitality is to strengthen the relationship with the client: “With hospitality you build trust, you generate future contacts, relationships and opportunities. What you want through this relationship is to build loyalty and generate closer contact. This gives you the keys to innovate in your company and create emotional intelligence.”
Paco Caro summarized that the three great objectives of hospitality are loyalty, prescription and innovation.
Bibiana Ballbè continued with the curiosity to know if hospitality is something that is intrinsic to the world of luxury, as Paco Caro well pointed out: "Luxury demands personalization, it demands humane treatment, attention to detail, a great team of people, and that is expensive. This cannot be digitized because it is person to person.” Elena Foguet wanted to emphasize the fact that “it is important that hospitality is a value found in each person in the company. We try to transmit them to everyone, from the security personnel to the people who serve in the stores, this makes the customer feel more comfortable and come back, living a cozy and unique experience.”
The next topic that Bibiana Ballbè wanted to address was how to transmit the culture of hospitality to the entire team? For Michael Cleaver, from La Roca Village, it is something crucial: “you can have the processes well established, but you have to hire the person who has that sensitivity. It can be taught, but there is an element that is intrinsic." Juan Mediavilla added that “in restaurants we are undergoing a change, a lot of effort has been put into the dining experience, but contact with the heart has been left to one side. There is one thing that is essential: you have to care about the client, and so you can be by her side for whatever she needs from the moment she arrives until she leaves." To which Elena Foguet added: “Hospitality is the art of empathy. Take the path of differentiation through dealing with people. You choose as a company where you want to go, if we want a social impact in the world with more humanity, the relationship with people is essential. We must encourage it, work on it, develop it and educate it.”
To end this talk, Bibiana Ballbè asked the speakers their favorite quote on hospitality. For Michael Cleaver it would be “A new day, a new guest”, for Paco Caro: “Knowing the person to make them special, knowledge is what gives you the possibility of surprise”. Svetlana wanted to close her intervention by saying that: "Everyone is a universe", Sergio Rodriguez's vision was that: "planning makes the client feel comfortable and an empathic execution of the speech is necessary". Lourdes Carbó closed with a double quote: “Review your values and once someone is your client, they will always be your client”. Elena Foguet said that: "Think about the unexpected and surprise."
With the new year we hope to welcome new talks, with topics that will not cease to amaze us.
