Christian Clerc, President of hotel operations – Europe, Middle East and Africa, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts Christian Clerc, President of hotel operations – Europe, Middle East and Africa, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts

13. Christian Clerc, President of hotel operations – Europe, Middle East and Africa, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts (Last year 15th)

Christian Clerc took over as vice president, before moving up as president of hotel operations for the region.

As part of his role, Christian Clerc was responsible for relocating the Four Seasons’ EMEA corporate office to Dubai. “The move is a sign of our strong commitment to the Middle East and to the importance that we place on this region going forward,” Clerc states.

It’s been a busy time for Four Seasons. In the past 12 months, Clerc has led his teams to open five new hotels in the EMEA region. These include Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach, Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay, and Four Seasons Hotel Moscow — first properties for the group in these markets. Four Seasons Hotel The Westcliff Johannesburg and The Grand-Hôtel du Cap-Ferrat, A Four Seasons Hotel also opened in the past year.

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The group’s business in the region has a strong growth pipeline. Projects are at various stages of development in Abu Dhabi, Kuwait, Madrid and in Morocco — Casablanca and Taghazhout Bay. Earlier this year, Four Seasons also confirmed a second Dubai property — this time a business hotel in the city’s financial district. Speaking to Hotelier, Clerc also hinted at a property in Jeddah and said the operator was “interested” in Oman.

A Swiss national, Clerc has worked all around the world, with stints in the US, Mexico, France, Switzerland and Italy.

“The many and varied experiences I’ve had working around the world have given me the ability to be relevant in key markets. I also consider myself to be fiercely competitive, and deeply passionate about quality and excellence,” Clerc says.

By the numbers

Number of years in role: 2
Number of years with company: 15
Number of Middle East operating hotels: 11
Number of Middle East pipeline hotels: 4

Fun fact

Christian Clerc is a member of the Ecole Hôtelièr de Lausanne mentor programme.