Maisons Pariente was born three years ago from the desire of Patrick Pariente – founder of Naf Naf– to explore a new concept of hospitality. Selecting exceptional locations which are always among the family’s personal favourites, the collection reinvents them with audacity. Each property has its own soul and creates a sense of wonder in its guests. The excellence of the service of Maisons Pariente does not set aside in any way ; pleasure, emotion, and conviviality.
Today, Guy Bertaud, Managing Director of the collection, tells us more about these exceptional experiences. This wonderful high-end hotel professional has forged his experience in fabulous properties and international groups: Plaza Athénée, The H Dubai, InterContinental, Shangri-La, to name a few. It is through several continents that he has created his own vision of luxury hospitality, off the beaten track, which now combines beautifully with the very spirit of Maisons Pariente.
Crillon le Brave
Vendom.jobs - Could you present Maisons Pariente and its history?
Guy Bertaud - In early 2010, Patrick Pariente - who, after the sale of Naf Naf, devoted himself to real estate investment - bought a plot of land in Courchevel where he built L’Apogée. The hotel was then handed over to the management of Oetker Collection. From there, his passion for the hospitality industry was born. Other buying opportunities then presented themselves. In 2018, he took over the hotel Crillon le Brave, a 5 stars Relais & Châteaux, located at the foot of Mont Ventoux. And after having acquired in 2017 a hotel in Saint-Tropez to renovate it completely with the clear project of a 5-star positioning, the property openend in 2019 as Lou Pinet. Shortly after, Le Coucou in Méribel, with its 55 rooms and suites as well as two chalets was inaugurated. There is also a hotel to come soon in Paris, in the Marais, currently in development this one will open in 2022. This is the takeover of three old buildings. It will be a property of 62 rooms and suites with an important restaurant including a terrace overlooking Rue de la Verrerie and Rue des Archives.
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Lou Pinet
V.J. What are Maisons Pariente’s values?
G.B. – Let me say that the name of the collection perfectly reflects its spirit and values. Our “addresses” are intended to remain at a human scale thus providing a high-end service. Our motivation is to welcome guests as if they were arriving in their personal home. Next, I would like to draw a distinction between luxurious hospitality and luxury hotels. Luxury hotels often share the same values of exceptional products, rarity, a lot of customization and service. While luxurious hospitality sometimes integrates many diverse contributors, who do not all necessarily have the same values. For me, Maisons Pariente shares the values of the luxury world: rarity, ultra-personalisation, etc. Moreover, we have a motto: “Nous sommes familial, mais pas familier" which translates to "Warm as a family, but not familiar". This means that we possess the sense of generosity of a friendly welcome, but with all due respect to the hotel-guest relationship.
V.J. - What is your mission within the collection?
G.B. - I am in charge of running the collection in correlation with the General Managers of each address. My role is to organise the strategic and financial aspects. I support the group in its development. We are constantly looking at other opportunities to create new hospitality products & experiences. Within the headquarter, we also establish all the support functions that allow managers and their teams to have a baseline.
Le Coucou
V.J.- After so many international experiences, particularly in large groups, what aspects pushed you to work in a family-owned group?
G.B. – The notion of a family-owned group, which is the DNA of the Maisons Pariente group, has always seduced me: this form of generosity, aesthetics, and uniqueness that is specific to each address. I deeply love this sense of hospitality, welcoming people, sharing experiences, which align with the brand, but above all with the Pariente family. These values have obviously influenced my choice.
The interest that I have found in large international groups is that we are brought to work with many diverse cultures. Being a curious person by nature, I took great pleasure in this type of exchange. Moreover, I found this mix of cultures within the Maisons Pariente collection through our international clientele.
V.J. – Of all the expertise you carry from your past, what would you like to bring to the collection?
G.B. – The notions that I have just mentioned of openness, diversity, sense of sharing, and also energy. We often talk about standards in hotels and I do not like this term. On the contrary I have always been convinced that everything is customizable, tailored and that we have to go beyond expectations. This has always been the common thread in my career and is absolutely consistent with my mission at Maisons Pariente. Each being, each host, each room, is different and has the right to a unique and personal treatment. Therein lies our motivation. I think that the great specificity of our properties, due to their small size, is the ability to ultra-personalise all services.
Crillon le Brave
V.J. What is your personal credo regarding management?
G. B. – I have only one, which may seem simple, but is also too often overlooked: "Treat others the way you want to be treated". This aspect is reflected in our organisation, where we are primarily committed to the human relationship. When recruiting, I give more importance to the candidate's attitude than to the lines on their CV. This notion of attitude is unique to the world of luxury. Being in an industry where the customer can spend exceptionally large sums, high expectations can be the norm and so is also the required attention in return.
V.J. - While the high-end hotel industry is still experiencing a subdued period, do you think that this enforced break could prove to be positive?
G.B. - Indeed I am sure of that! The period we are living in will even strengthen the positioning of meaningful small size hotels. The crisis has taught us that we must not be too large, but we should rather be able to keep things under control. The hotels in the Maisons Pariente collection fit perfectly into this perspective that will be strengthened over time.
I am also convinced that we are going to return to fundamentally human values. By this I mean that a hotel that offers an online check-in formula where everything is impersonal, will no longer correspond to the desires of customers. On the other hand, we must develop ways to welcome customers by limiting as much as possible the administrative aspects. The time that will not be spent on this aspect, which is certainly necessary but unappreciated, will be gained in interacting with our guests to understand their expectations. Moreover, I am currently looking by all means to eliminate the check-in in the administrative sense so that it becomes a real accompaniment of the customer. In addition, there are still many people who fear sanitary conditions, the need for a specific passport, etc. These are heavy aspects from which the leisure customer wants to be freed. We have just spent almost a year and a half hearing & reading tragic news, without a real scope on the deep well-being of people. We, as hoteliers, must refocus on these human values of kindness and listening.
Lou Pinet
V.J. - While it is still difficult to travel around, what would be your next dream destination?
G.B. – It remains the same as prior to the crisis. My dream destination is Bhutan. Because of the serenity and the curiosity that this country inspires me, but also for its nature, its mysterious side. It is a very small kingdom that has dared to impose many rules. For me, it is fascinating that the concept of happiness is cherished in the first article of its constitution and that it is the main definition of the standard of living of Bhutanese people.
