The eternal optimist

01-Aug-08 Christy Wyatt

When I meet Simon F Cooper, US-based COO and president of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, during his annual visit to the UK, he cuts a distinguished, but approachable, figure - perhaps not surprising given his 'commitment to people' reputation.

While last year was about development, Cooper reveals this year he has "almost put my sales hat on again". And in these challenging economic times, relationships with the travel trade are important: up to 80 per cent of Ritz-Carlton's high-season luxury bookings come from agents.

"Over the past seven years, I would argue changes in the luxury end of the business have been dramatic," he says. "People are acquiring wealth at a younger age - so you have luxury consumers with a family at home." Hotels are responding to this market, he says, with the 'no-kids' rule of 10 years ago now falling by the wayside.

Specialist brands such as Armani and Bulgari have also entered the luxury hotel arena. "Who designs a hotel is much more significant than it used to be," Cooper explains, adding that established names are also gaining importance in creating destination hotel spas and restaurants. "The question is, how do I stop my guests getting in a cab and going to Gordon Ramsay's down the street?" Ritz-Carlton now has restaurants that feature 10 celebrity chefs, including Ramsay. The company also works with a range of upmarket spa partners, including Espa and Six Senses.

Ritz-Carlton is also noting an overlap of family and cultural luxury travel. The chain now offers more suites with connecting rooms, and more pools. In April, it announced a 10-year deal with Jean-Michel Cousteau's Ocean Futures Society to expand the Ambassadors of the Environment programme. Originally launched for children, the programme emphasises respect for ecosystem sustainability through "hands-on" activities, and proved so popular it is now being developed into an adult project. "Families want an education component," says Cooper. Give Back Getaways also launched in April - a social-responsibility initiative where guests can give time to the local community.

Exclusivity remains a key luxury holiday requirement. As Luxury Travel exclusively revealed in June, Ritz-Carlton is to launch an ultra brand of resorts, Reserve, targeting the top-spending two per cent of its clientele. The first opens at Phulay Bay, Thailand, later this year.

Despite developments, though, the company has felt the credit crunch. "Typically we look at oil price as relative to hotel costs," says Cooper. "Now airlines are reducing fleets and not flying marginal routes. Often, marginal routes are leisure routes." However, he adds: "People will always travel - it is one of the last things they give up."

North America hotels in May had a higher occupancy level than May 2007, Cooper says, but "not at the same rate. Price sensitivity has entered into it. We have a large leisure portfolio there, where the dollar is currently weak. So if you tell the kids 'we're not going on the Europe trip I promised', you'd better substitute it with something bloody good!"

'Green' concerns are also a challenge. "In Europe, you are more environmentally conscious in a practical way than we are in the US," Cooper says. "But it'll have to change. Luxury consumers still want hot water when they want it, but they want everything to be powered by solar power."

While Cooper is happy to discuss Ritz-Carlton's developments, he is reluctant to blow his own trumpet when asked about the personal highlights of his time at the company to date. He settles on pointing out seven years of double-digit growth. The company has 38,000 employees worldwide, and "the bottom line is you've got 38,000 families directly impacted by decisions you and your team make". Employee satisfaction is high on the agenda for Cooper, who professes to favour employer awards over customer awards.

While Cooper is based in Chevy Chase, Maryland, US, he grew up in England. A busy schedule means the father-of-three travels "all the time". Time off allows him to play golf "occasionally, but not as much as I'd like". He says: "I also love my garden. I'm a tinkerer - pottering around gardens and renovating old houses. It's the frustrated architect in me." So is this the path he would have chosen had he not entered the hotel industry? "No," he says. "I always would have been a hotelier - or a beach bum. But my wife is definitely Mrs Ritz, so I can't be!"

BIOGRAPHY

1945: Born in England; later earned an MBA from the University of Toronto

1972: Emigrated to Canada; worked for Canadian Pacific Hotels & Resorts

1995: Commitment to People Award by the Council of Hotel & Restaurant Trainers. Honorary fellowship from Ryerson University in Toronto

1999: Chairman of the Board of Governors, University of Guelph, Ontario

1998-2001: President of Marriott Lodging Canada and senior VP of Marriott Lodging International, responsible for Canada and New England

February 2001: Joined Ritz-Carlton

2004: Appointed to the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Canada Institute Advisory Board

2005: Elected to the Board of Directors of First Horizon National Corporation.