1. 28 | EP Magazine | July 2015
Nicholas Rettie | Business
SINGLENESS
OFPURPOSE
Nicholas Rettie is one of the most recognisable characters
in the UK hotel industry. Having opened and managed
some of London’s most iconic venues, he is regarded now
as something of an elder statesman of the sector. The industry
stalwart sits down with Arlene McCaffrey to discuss
hotel operations and the future of operations in the UK
N
icholas Rettie is a charismatic,
well-known and well-regarded
hotelier who has opened, managed
and run some of the more interesting hotels
in the UK. Having joined The Savoy as a
management trainee straight out of school,
Nicholas went on to enjoy a career that
took him to Scotland, Paris and Cologne.
Returning to London in the mid 70s, he
then took on the role of General Manager
of The Athenaeum, a classic niche Mayfair
hotel following in the footsteps of his
predecessor and mentor, Ron Jones.
“Working under Ron Jones was one of
the greatest professional experiences of my
life. I learnt so much about the industry but
also about myself.
He was a classical hotel operator – he
knew the business, he understood guests
and their needs and he was always eager to
train and develop his team.
In 1991 Nicholas would move on
to open, and thereafter manage, one of
London’s first design-led boutique hotels
– The Halkin, a move that proved pivotal
to his career.
“I’m a contrary kind of bloke, and I think
the move after a decade of being in big
corporations to working for a private hotel
– owned by Singaporean entrepreneurs
Christina and B.S. Ong – was seen by some
in the industry as something I would come
to regret. In fact it was an eye-opening,
exhilarating and formative experience for
me. Working for owners who aren’t hoteliers
but who have a definite idea of how they
want the venue to look and feel was quite
extraordinary. I remember telling them
that we could find cheaper uniforms
for the receptionists – who at the time
were wearing Giorgio Armani black label
suits – and being asked ‘Why on earth
would I want to do that?’
“The Halkin is an extraordinary building
and at the time was a radical new addition to
the London hotel scene. Critics were harsh,
however because they didn’t understand
what we were offering and people resisted
the innovation.”
The owners, however, understood the
luxury market, so they stuck to their guns
and in the end their commitment won
out and the market came round.
“That was an important lesson for
me because as I saw the change in attitude
towards the hotel happen, it proved to
me that if you’re faithful and true to a
belief, then you will win out in the end.
After that experience I embraced the
mantra of ‘Stick with it’. If you know it’s
right, and what you’re offering has a place,
then stick with it!
When the same owners bought an
erstwhile failing hotel on Park Lane – then
known as the Londonderry – Nicholas
would become part of the team that was to
radically transform the fortunes of the
venue, opening The Metropolitan in early
1997. The first major establishment to
embrace the concept of having a branded
restaurant on site, the hotel would go on to
enjoy massive success with Nobu operating
alongside the now famous Met Bar.
“Again, at the time, the owners were
ridiculed for buying a business where so
many had ‘gone before’, trying and failing to
make it a success. They were determined,
however and in the end radical ‘Singleness
of purpose’ won out.”
The concept of ‘Singleness of purpose’
– a belief that operators should be true to
the vision of their business and what the
owners want from their investment – is
something Nicholas refers to often.
“Singleness of purpose is something that
the hotel industry isn’t very good at. We’re
trained to want to be all things to all people
and to say ‘Yes’ to every request, however my
experiences at The Halkin and then at The
Metropolitan taught me that actually it’s
quite alright to be true to your own offering
and to say ‘No’ on occasion rather than
dilute your own vision for the business.”
Deciding the time had come to move on
to the next challenge in his career, Nicholas

2. epmagazine.co.uk | 29
Nicholas Rettie | BusinessNickDawe
would then take on the role of Managing
Director of Sir Terence Conran’s Great
Eastern Hotel before its reopening at the
end of 1999, overseeing the £65 million
reconstruction of the 267 room hotel,
four restaurants and five bars.
Departing the business in 2006
following the sale to Hyatt, Nicholas would
embrace his experience of opening hotels,
and join the pre-opening teams at The
Aviator, in Farnborough, Brooklands in
Weybridge and the Great Northern Hotel in
Kings Cross. He’s currently facilitating the
openings of a design-led boutique hotel in
Moscow and a development in Covent
Garden through his business, MRMD.
With such a comprehensive background
in the hotel sector, Nicholas is one of the
pre-eminent operators in the sector and
so is well placed to make educated
observations on the future of the industry
and what it is to be a true hotelier.
“Working abroad, immersing yourself
in another culture and experiencing things
outside of your normal realm is something
I believe is vital, both for personal and
professional development. Learning another
language, living a continental lifestyle,
understanding another culture – bringing all
of these things together gives you a better
understanding of people and what they
expect from their own lives.”
Now a long-standing member of the
Master Innholders and former Governor at
Westminster Kingsway College, Nicholas
firmly believes in the power of education,
training and mentoring in the hotel trade.
Joining forces with Diana Mountain
and Richard Middleton, in 2006 the trio
established MRMD to provide expert
consultancy and advisory services to
owners, investors, lenders and operating
companies in the hotel, resort and
restaurant sectors. “I very much wanted
to remain in the industry as I think it’s
one of the finest sectors in which a person
can hope to have a career.
“One of the greatest privileges of
this business is the people you work with.
The friendships you make last forever and
no matter where you are you’re almost
inevitably going to bump into someone
you already know.”
“We’retrainedtowanttobeallthingstoallpeopleand
tosay‘Yes’toeveryrequest,howevermyexperiencesat
TheHalkinandthenatTheMetropolitantaughtmethat
actuallyit’squitealrighttosay‘No’onoccasionrather
thandiluteyourownvisionforthebusiness
”Nicholas Rettie Founder of MRMD