Pierre Jochem
Pierre Jochem
General Manager
La Mamounia
Interviewed by Lyle michael
The Man with a Vision
You can make a man a leader but it’s his innate ability that will prove his mettle. Some have it and some just don’t! With visionary Pierre Jochem, General Manager of La Mamounia in Marrakech, there’s no doubting which category he falls into. While GM is how he is known at the world-leading Grande Dame of Marrakech, Director General is his broader designation, one that he’s earned over 25 years in the hotel industry, with brands such as Raffles, Oberoi, Taj, Four Seasons, Hyatt & Peninsula.
He sits quietly at his designated spot at Champagne Lounge in The Oberoi, Mumbai lobby as we prep him up for a tête-à-tête over a cuppa tea with the morning view of the Arabian Sea. Pierre is a man who gets his point across in as few words as necessary but is genial as many a distinguished man we’ve known, as a seasoned hotelier would be, with steel-blue eyes and light-grey hair to complete the picture. Gentleness is what strikes you when you consider the individual, and excellence defines the professional that he is. What would he attribute his success to? The finer details! Like a Moroccon-flavoured macaron courtesy Chef Pierre Hermes at La Mamounia, which houses the first namesake boutique on the African continent.
“Life is all about the small details,” smiles Pierre, “I use this principle to surprise guests at the hotel to provide them with an unforgettable experience. Take Mamounia for example. It is over 100 years old, the perfect blend of heritage and modernity. I have played with colours and graphics to create little touches that are subtle yet effective in design. The bed linen and curtains also earn the same treatment and the floral arrangements just as much as staff numbers and sales figures. I change the flower décor every three months!” This is a fundamental that has proven unbeaten at most of the hotels Pierre has worked at, be it at The Oberoi, New Delhi; The Imperial, New Delhi; The Pierre, New York; Raffles, Singapore; Palace Hotel, Beijing; La Mamounia, Morocco – his home and place of work for 11 years now, and much else in between.
It’s been a peppered life for Pierre, from his place of birth in the Republic of Congo – given his father’s piloting postings – to hotel management school in France, Strasbourg to be precise. In 1985, he moved to London to take on his first post, as F&B Director at the Hyatt, Carlton Tower. Then onwards, the life of a worldly hotelier with luxury to his name began to take form. From The Regent in Bangkok to the Island Shangri-La in Hong Kong, where he was in charge of a 600-room hotel, particularly a challenge, as he recalls, during the handover from British Hong Kong to the People’s Republic of China Hong Kong, and post the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989. Training and developing staff in luxury, who had come from the villages to work in the big city, was a task, one that had to met head on.
“I have witnessed it all, from earthquakes to typhoons, bomb alerts and much more,” Pierre reminiscences. “After all, it has been 25+ years and hotel openings/renovations/operations are always a new and great experience. When you are given a property to work on, from scratch or to carry forward, then to see it come to life, it’s something else altogether.”
Pierre’s portfolio goes on to include properties like Peninsula Group’s Palace Hotel in Beijing, where he was hotel manager for four years, before India called him over to be the manager at The Oberoi in New Delhi, for two years. That was 1998, a time when he adapted fairly quickly to the Indian way of life and continues to enjoy a murgh tikka whenever he’s in town. The Pierre by Taj in New York saw him yet again in managerial garb and what followed was his biggest challenge yet with the repositioning of the Imperial Hotel in New Delhi. The seven-year project elevated him to General Manager, then Vice President, and awoke the sleeping giant of a hotel to soar to great heights. One last stint before La Mamounia came to the fore for Pierre was at Raffles Hotel in Singapore, where he went on to serve as Regional VP for the Asia-Pacific region, carrying out the vision, strategy and training for eight hotels under the company.
And let there be La Mamounia! The heritage hotel celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2023 and Pierre was at the helm of its renovation on a major scale, in two phases, one in 2021 and one last year. He shares, “I had a beautiful product in Mamounia, when I joined in 2013. It helps that I have worked only with luxury properties in my career, for this is one majestic and exquisite hotel to manage. During COVID, we were called to adapt to new concepts which we did by revisiting public spaces in the hotel and focusing on them. We had a high percentage of individual travellers who came just for the experience of luxury in Marrakech and we delivered that to them. 20 acres of gardens, parks, spas, bars, dining establishments, pools, what have you, guests don’t feel the need to venture out!”
Pierre, himself, does venture home to France whenever he can, makes it easier that it’s just three and a half hours from Morocco. And makes time to golf, his favourite sport now. And barely cooks anymore… Why, we ask? “I used to much more before, but now not really. My wife, Evelyne, will tell you I was a pretty good cook.” Today, it’s mostly just work, and leisure time when possible with the four grandkids, from his two children, both of whom, happen to be in the hotel industry, too!