LODGING LEADERS
190 | Responsible Luxury and Sustainability with Franck Droin
LODGING LEADERS
Franck Droin is the hotel manager at The Mandarin Oriental Bangkok, and his 19 years of hospitality industry experience includes working with big brand hotel chains across various destinations in Europe, The Middle East, Africa, and Asia.
Franck is passionate about promoting the concept of responsible luxury and has fueled ground-breaking conversations and initiatives. Some of the successful projects he is leading with his team include giving back to local communities, and ending the plastic waste catastrophe that the country is facing.
Franck believes education, technology and the right mentorship is what luxury brands need to reduce waste, become eco-friendly, and to empower employees to create a more sustainable future.
In This Episode, Franck reveals …
- What terms like responsible luxury, sustainable luxury and sustainable tourism mean, and the business case for why they’re important.
- How hotels can combine luxury and sustainability without compromising on quality or value from the guest’s perspective, as well as their profitability.
- What to do when implementing sustainability programs, including how to get everyone’s “buy-in.”
- Why giving back to local communities is important, and how to go about getting started.
Resources & Links
Franck Droin
LODGING LEADERS
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310 | Hotels Convert to Housing: Federal COVID-19-relief funds fuel transactions
Dhruv Patel, president of Ridgemont Hospitality, in October shared a bittersweet moment with his parents, Pravin and Sima Patel, when the family business sold the first motel that Pravin had built from the ground up more than 30 years ago. But they rest assured knowing it was the right decision because the 22-room property is being converted into affordable housing for military veterans at risk of homelessness. The transaction is among hundreds taking place across the U.S. as state and local governments work with non-profit agencies to create affordable housing solutions for vulnerable populations amid the COVID-19 pandemic. In Episode 310 Long Live Lodging reports on the financial and legal aspects of what it takes to convert a hotel into long-term housing. This report is part of Long Live Lodging’s special coverage of the coronavirus crisis and its impact on the hospitality industry.
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309 | ‘Stay the Course’: Kathleen Bertrand recalls hospitality career focused on growth through diversity
Kathleen Bertrand believes Atlanta is a city where dreams can come true. A jazz recording artist, she served at the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau for more than 30 years, finding new ways to promote to the world the best things about the city she calls a “melting pot” of races and cultures. In Episode 309 of Lodging Leaders podcast Bertrand gets vocal and tells her story of rising through the ranks as one of the few Black women in leadership in the tourism industry. This session is part of Long Live Lodging’s special report commemorating Black History Month and the hospitality industry’s impact on the Civil Rights Movement.