Philippe Gombert Re-Elected As President Of The Relais & Châteaux Association
London November 2017…// Relais & Châteaux is delighted to announce that Philippe Gombert has been re-elected as the President of the Relais & Châteaux Association for another five years. The election was made by the association’s General Assembly during the annual Global Congress in Madrid on Tuesday, 14th November 2017. In addition, the Executive Committee was also announced, and welcomed two new members. The Executive Committee ensures the management of Relais & Châteaux, and welcomes two new members: Vito Cinque, the owner of Il San Pietro de Positano in Italy, as Vice-President of Europe and Matias de Cristobal, Director General of Awasi Atacama and Awasa Patagonia in Chile.
The very positive results of Philippe Gombert’s past four years in office are evident in the various projects that have been successfully followed during his time with Relais & Châteaux.
Entering the digital age
Digital communication is central to both transmitting information and, consequently, Relais & Châteaux’s brand image. Following the development of the association’s app, the new platform has made results quantifiable, with a doubling of the volume of sales and the conversion rate between visits and sales.
A promising new section dedicated to travel agencies has just been introduced. Another digital app called the Multiposting tool has been made available to the properties, assisting them with their recruiting strategies and the publicising of their advertisements.
Relais & Châteaux’s digital Instants magazine has been launched alongside a paper version that is issued twice a year to customers at all properties, reporting on current news and events. Articles are written by bloggers, journalists and influential contributors, and photos are taken from selected Instagram users, allowing Relais & Châteaux to depict the diversity of the association’s properties.
Promoting the local art of living
More than just an association, Relais & Châteaux is a movement committed to defending cultural history the local art of living. The Relais & Châteaux Vision presented to UNESCO in 2014 on its 60th anniversary is the foundation on which the brand’s identity is built, drawing attention to the need to defend the local art of living and protect biodiversity worldwide.
Dedicated sustainable cuisine
Relais & Châteaux currently constitutes the largest network of chefs in the world, all of whom actively uphold and defend the right to eat well. Strong commitments have been made to NGOs and associations such as Slow Food International, Ethic Ocean (with whom the Association has worked since 2009), Bon pour le Climat and Andes. The International Committee of Relais & Châteaux Restaurants was created in 2014 after presenting the vision to UNESCO.
The members of President Gombert’s new committee are as follows:
A New Executive Committee
- Philippe Gombert, International President
Owner of Château de la Treyne, France - George Goeggel, First Vice-President of the Americas
Owner of the Auberge du Soleil, United States - Olivier Roellinger, Vice-President of Chefs
Owner of Maisons de Bricourt, France - Vito Cinque, Vice-President of Europe
Owner of Il San Pietro di Positano, Italy - Jaisal Singh, Vice-President of Asia
Owner of Sher Bagh, The Serai, Jaisalmer, Jawai and Rajmahal Palace, India - Olivia Le Calvez, General Secretary
Owner of the Hôtel de Toiras & Villa Clarisse, France - Thomas Maechler, Treasurer
Owner of the Beau-Rivage Hotel, Switzerland - Mar Suau, Executive Committee member
Owner of the Son Brull Hotel & Spa, Spain - Matias de Cristobal, Executive Committee member
Director General of Awasi Atacama and Awasa Patagonia, Chile
Board of Directors
Three times a year, the members of the Executive Committee and the Committee of Delegates meet together for the Board of Directors, under the direction of the President, in order to discuss new members, validate the association’s strategic axes and approve their deployment.
A New Committee of Delegates
Elected by the members of each regional and national delegation, the Committee of Delegates consists of hotel and restaurant members. A Delegate serves for five years as the representative of their region’s properties to the Board of Directors. Each Delegate will work with a Vice-Delegate and a Chef, who will be part of the International Committee of Restaurants.
- Daniel Hostettler, Delegate for the Eastern United States
Maître de Maison of Ocean House, Weekapaug Inn and Blantyre, United States - Doug Bosch, Delegate for the Western United States and Mexico
Owner of The Inn at Dos Brisas, Washington, United States - George Schwarz, Delegate for Canada
Owner of the Post Hotel & Spa, Canada - Ignacio Masias, Delegate for Central and Latin America
Owner of Titilaka, Peru - Malcolm Neal Lewis, Delegate for the United Kingdom and Ireland
Owner of Longueville Manor, Jersey - Marie-Christine Clément, Delegate for the Grand-Ouest region, France
Owner of the Grand Hôtel du Lion d’Or, Romorantin-Lanthenay - Nicolas Decker, Delegate for the Grand-Est region – Rhône-Alpes, France
Owner of the Hostellerie La Cheneaudière & Spa, Colroy-la-Roche - Franck Farneti, Delegate for the Provence – Côte-d’Azur – Corsica – Languedoc region, France
Maître de Maison of the Cap d’Antibes Beach Hotel, Cap d’Antibes - Laurent Gardinier, Delegate for Paris and the Greater Paris area, France
Owner of the Domaine Les Crayères in Reims and the Le Taillevent restaurant, Paris - Éléonore Guérard, Delegate for the Grand Sud-Ouest region, France
Owner of La Bastide, and Les Prés d’Eugénie – Maison Guérard, France - Susanne Gräfin von Moltke, Delegate for Germany
Owner of the Park-Hotel Egerner Höfe, Allemagne - Johannes Christian Thiery, Delegate for Austria
Owner of the Hotel Schloss Dürnstein, Austria - Johan Creytens, Delegate for Benelux, Eastern Europe and Scandinavia
Owner of the Hotel Heritage, Belgium - Vincenzo Bianconi, Delegate for Italy
Owner of the Palazzo Seneca, Italy - Xavier Rocas, Delegate for Spain and Portugal
Owner of the Mas de Torrent Hotel & Spa, Spain - Justin Zammit Tabona, Delegate for the Mediterranean region – Middle East – Morocco
Owner of The Xara Palace, Mdina, Malta - Shan Varty, Delegate for Africa and the Indian Ocean region
Owner of the Londolozi Private Game Reserve, South Africa - Joerg Drechsel, Delegate for Asia
Owner of Purity and The Malabar House, India - Jim Carreker, Delegate for Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific region
Owner of The Louise restaurant, Australia - Tadamasa Saito, Delegate for Japan
Owner of Tobira Onsen Myojinkan, Japan
-ends-
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About Relais & Châteaux
Founded in 1954, Relais & Châteaux is an association of 540 exceptional hotels and restaurants run by independent men and women who share the same passion for their profession and for maintaining authentic relationships with their clients.
The members of Relais & Châteaux are present on every continent, from the vineyards of Napa Valley to Provence and the Indian Ocean. Each one invites you to discover the art of living through the specific culture of the locale and to share in a unique human adventure.
Each member of Relais & Châteaux is profoundly determined to protect, share and showcase the richness and diversity of dining and hospitality throughout the world. They endorse this ambition, in keeping with the preservation of local heritage and the environment, through the Relais & Châteaux Vision, presented to UNESCO in November of 2014.