Abdul Baaghil
It is Monday, May 10, and it is already the last episode of “Monday motivation – Felix asks” for season 3. Time is flying by. My website Withfelix.de has been live for almost two months, and I am grateful for the journey so far. I had the pleasure to interview inspirational people from all over the world, as well as build connections with passionate industry professionals. A new contact I made through this project is my guest today. We connected through LinkedIn and continued our conversations about hospitality, restaurants, and the entire industry on Instagram. During our discussions, it became apparent that hospitality is much more than a job to him. After several years in leading positions with international hotel chains, he started his own company, Harvest Cotton Tale (HCT), a consultancy for hotel and restaurant concept creation. I am glad to welcome our guest today, Abdul Baaghil, CEO and Co-Founder of HCT – Hospitality Group.
Abdul started his career in San Francisco and continued his path in the United States with various posts in LA, Washington, Las Vegas, and New York, as Director of F&B at St. Regis between 1999 and 2001. In 2003 he joined The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company as EAM F&B in Bahrain and was a senior member of the food and beverage advisory board of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. He also worked as Hotel Manager of The Ritz-Carlton, Financial Street, Beijing.
In 2011, post his tenure as General Manager of Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, Abdul became an independent hotel consultant for “Al Azzema” by The Crystal Group, Lebanon, specializing in preliminary concept development, design rending, and study. In 2013, he worked with former Executive Chef of Michelin star restaurants, Bruno Contreras, on numerous independent luxury hotel consultancies in Africa. They joined forces in 2016 and founded the Harvest Cotton Tale Hospitality Group in Lisbon, Portugal.
Since its inception, the HCT has created the concepts for several brands, including three different concepts for Mein Schiff 1 & 2 TUI Cruises, as well as food and beverage consultancy for Velaa Private Island, Maldives, to name a few.
During our interview, we talked about the start of Abdul's career, his understanding of hospitality, and his meeting with James Bond. With their company, Abdul and Bruno are constantly creating and designing new brands and concepts. His advice for the new generation comes as no surprise - it is all about Branding!
Abdul recommended a book that has been on my “to read” list for so long and will be my next read, as soon as I am through with “The 7 habits of highly effective people”. A book that was recommended twice during my interviews by Anna Ziegler and Emma Parfitt.
I hope you enjoy the read, and I am excited to start season 4 of “Monday Motivation- Felix asks” soon. Please share your questions or thoughts below in the comments, via Email, on LinkedIn, or any other channel.
#sharepositivestories
Question 1: Where did you start your career?
Abdul Baaghil (AB): “I graduated from both Les Roches Hotel Management School Bluche with a diploma in Hotel Management in 1991 and a BS, Business Administration from EU Business School in Montreux, Switzerland. I have traveled extensively to Asia and Europe with my parents and was enamored with Hyatt Hotels & resorts food & beverage concepts in Asia pacific. My first employment in the industry was as an Assistant Restaurant Manager with the Hyatt Regency, Embarcadero Centre in San Francisco.”
Question 2: What does hospitality mean to you?
“It means everything to me.”
AB: “It means everything to me. I live it day in and day out in both my personal and professional life. It is in my DNA which led me to start my very own hospitality group in 2016. Throughout my professional career, I had a few mentors and I have been equally inspired by many innovative leaders that shaped our industry. In September of 2016, I felt it was time to do the same lead with innovative concepts of hotels/restaurants and to inspire others.”
Question 3: Can you please share an anecdote you experienced, that shows the variety and beauty of our industry?
AB: “In 1996, I was the Director of restaurants at the Park Hyatt Los Angeles at Century City. On day one of the jobs, I was overwhelmed with the number of Hollywood celebrities in the dining room. I met with Sir Sean Connery who was in Los Angeles staying at the hotel to film "The Rock". It was always a pleasure to cater to him and his family. A true gentleman."
Question 4: Have you had a mentor in your career? Who was it and did she/he give you a piece of advice you still follow?
AB: “I have had a few mentors but two who inspired my professional career are Horst Schulze and Ian Schrager. I don’t believe Horst will ever retire, he is still in the game inspiring and working together with millennials, generation X, and is as passionate as he was running The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company.”
Question 5: What would you like to say to a hospitality/ tourism student/professional who recently started his/her career, at this right moment?
“We live in times where resumes are not good enough; it is all about the power of “Your Brand”, yet genuine and true to self.”
AB: “It is extremely important to be passionate and to have a purpose. If you plan to grow within a hotel company, stick to one and don’t move around. It is important to have a personality and to be your brand that compliments the overall environment by creating a meaningful, and deep relationship with the core brand. We live in times where resumes are not good enough; it is all about the power of “Your Brand”, yet genuine and true to self.”
Question 6: Do you have a book recommendation - this could be everything from a novel to an autobiography, etc.
AB: “Excellence Wins” by Horst Schulze.
Which industry expert would you like to see featured at “Monday motivation - Felix asks”?
AB: “Bashar Wali”
Abdul, thank you so much for sharing your insights and for your time. I hope that we will get the chance to meet somewhere around the globe. You are always welcome here, at the stunning Lake Tegernsee in Bavaria.
Happy Monday, Felix
