We’ve started a podcast. Wait, come back… Specifically, we’ve teamed up with Change Makers – who excel at eliciting insight from CEOs, campaigners, composers, actors, economists and former prime ministers – to spend some quality (Zoom) time with a host of our favourite hotelier duos to find out more about what makes them tick. Over eight globetrotting episodes, host Michael Hayman (MBE, no less) explores these partnerships – some romantic, some business; all creative – and how they’ve shaped the hotels they’ve birthed, the highs and lows of hospitality, and what a more sustainable future for the travel industry might look like. Think of each one as a little audio escape…
Episode one: Mr & Mrs Smith’s James and Tamara Lohan
To kick off the series our very own founders, James and Tamara, share their thoughts on all things travel and what it means to be a hotel lover in Unprecedented Times™.
Episode two: the Pig’s Judy and Robin Hutson
The founders of the mould-breaking stable of Pig hotels discuss the importance of the kitchen garden, rooting themselves in local communities and channelling the spirit of Marianne Faithful.
Episode three: Reschio’s Count Benedikt and Donna Nencia Bolza
The pitch-perfect repurposing of an ancient Umbrian castle – Castello di Reschio – by the Bolza family has expertly brought the past into the present. Here husband and wife, Benedikt and Nencia, tell the story of their ever-evolving estate and the starring role of Mother Nature in its transformation.
Episode four: Soneva’s Eva Malmström Shivdasani and Sonu Shivdasani
For 25 years Sonu and Eva have attracted attention and accolades for their heartfelt hospitality. Listen in as the pioneers of sustainable luxury unpack the principles of their philosophy and explain how their relationship flourished through travel.
Episode five: Uxua Casa’s Bob Shevlin and Wilbert Das
From creating things for the moment to creating things for life – business partners Bob and Wilbert left the fashion world to create Uxua Casa: a community-minded escape in Brazil’s ‘capital of happiness’. Hear how an accidental stranding led to their life-changing career switch…
Thanks for listening. Three more episodes will be launched over the next three weeks. We’ll keep you posted…