Retained Executive Search for a Global Luxury Hotel Brand’s New Retail SVP

Headhunting for one of the world’s most definitive luxury hotel brands

With over a hundred hotels and resorts across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia, and revenues in excess of $5bn, our client is recognised as one of the  top luxury hotel brands internationally. 

Their ambition is to build a $100m+ global omni-channel retail business selling beautifully crafted products across the bedroom, bathroom, kitchen & interiors categories, both to existing customers and new - an exciting new venture that we foresee being incredibly successful. 

Following the appointment to the board of their Chief Commercial Officer we were invited to advise on the new retail venture that both the board and investors wanted to launch, and a breakfast with the CCO followed. 

Specifically, the client wanted to develop a global retail business to sell within the hotels, direct online, through digital marketplaces and via luxury brand partners. The brief immediately resonated and fit firmly within our area of expertise and knowledge so we were clear on the person and profile they were after.

 

The brief - Highly tailored and meticulously executed

We would  stop at nothing to find and hire the best person in the world with the clear ambition to recommend a stellar 5 person shortlist to hire from with total confidence. 

Our client was looking for an individual who had built international retail businesses across different geographies and cultural nuances. Someone who’d excelled within the global luxury sector, with a proven track record of execution and who possessed a personality that fit the amazing culture that the business is so well known for.

At Princedale we don’t do job descriptions, instead tailoring a hand written brief through conversations with our clients. We delve deep into the client’s business, teasing out the challenges, opportunities, goals and ambitions. We get to grips with the culture and personalities to ensure we understand the character traits of the person who’ll best fit, and we ask the hard but necessary questions of the stakeholders, bringing forth the tiny details which make up the crucial bigger picture. 

Often, the brief we end up with differs greatly from the brief originally brought by our client, yet we hear time and again how accurate it is when it’s played back.

In collaboration with our client, we designed a very tailored brief and with a clear understanding of the remit, ambition and specifically the type of individual needed, we built the search plan of where we would meticulously look.

 

Princedale’s mission is simple: to blow away our clients and ensure they are spoilt for choice with the 5 person shortlist we present

We invested weeks proactively mapping out afresh every logical luxury brand, to the tune of 275 leaders. 

Together we whittled down the longlist to the top 15, following covert references, historical knowledge, and open-minded thinking. 

We then personally interviewed the longlist, people based in London, Paris, Geneva, Zurich, Hong Kong, L.A & New York — sadly not racking up any air miles!

 

Culture, ambition & EQ - a unanimous hire for the perfect candidate

From the five shortlisted individuals that we presented of the 275 people originally  considered, our client took all through to first and second stage assessments. 

From the final two contenders, following four board executive interviews and the presentations of detailed case studies, it took four weeks to make the final decision. Both candidates were ace and it proved a very hard decision in the end.

The successful individual, ultimately a unanimous hire, couldn’t be more thrilled to get started and is set to take the world by storm!

We at Princedale wish them and our client all the best and look forward to continuing to work successfully with our client in the future.