DAVID COLLAS, GENERAL MANAGER, MANDARIN ORIENTAL, TOKYO: 'JAPAN IS A BIT LIKE THE NIRVANA OF LUXURY HOTELS’ (Japon)
From Hong Kong to New York, and Geneva in between, David Collas has built an international career within the Mandarin Oriental group, which has led him to the helm of one of Japan's most iconic establishments: Mandarin Oriental, Tokyo.
Drawing on this multicultural experience, the General Manager now explores the extreme refinement of Japanese hospitality, where every gesture is marked by precision and humility. In this interview, he discusses his adjustment to Japanese culture, his vision of leadership, and how he combines the spirit of Omotenashi with the excellence of Mandarin Oriental to shape the future of this iconic hotel.
Journal des Palaces: You’ve served in several markets before arriving in Tokyo. How have your past experiences shaped your leadership style and your vision for Mandarin Oriental Tokyo?
David Collas: I have been fortunate enough to work with Mandarin Oriental in Hong Kong, in Asia, in Geneva, in Europe, and in New York, in the United States, which has given me a very deep understanding of the brand's values.
In each city, I would say I put myself in a situational leadership role: when you move to a new country, as I have, and especially in Japan, you have to unlearn some of your leadership skills because you are in a completely different culture and mindset.
I believe that, when it comes to Japan, you really have to be determined to come and work here. I always say that you don't come to Japan by chance. It's so different from what you may have experienced elsewhere. You really have to come here with a strong appreciation of who the Japanese are, their history, and the way they see society themselves.
When you see the incredible level of execution, Japan is a bit like the nirvana of luxury hospitality. To succeed in Japan, you need to have enough experience and be very determined, with the desire and motivation to come and work here. It is important. You have to be prepared. For me, it came at the right time.
The Japanese are all about taking their time. They also have an incredible attention to detail, which can sometimes be difficult for Europeans to understand. They are in the top 2% when it comes to absolute detail.
It's fantastic, but in a way, it means that everything takes a little longer, because they can't do things that aren't perfect. All of this has shaped my leadership during this past year in Tokyo.
What has been the most unexpected challenge since joining the Tokyo property? How did you overcome it?
Values are very different between the West and Japan, and Japanese society is not necessarily familiar with Western values. For example, if you try to motivate your teams with money, which is not a value in their eyes, you will not succeed. This is a big difference. In the United States, you can tell them that what they are going to do will enable them to earn more, but here they are not interested, it will not work.
On the other hand, in Japan, the number one value is the collective. So when you arrive, you have to understand that the individual comes after the team. We operate under a collective leadership and management style. They need to talk to each other. A Japanese colleague will never try to take the upper hand.
It's not always easy, even for them, to manage their teams. There is very little confrontation. This is something that is very different, even compared to the rest of Asia.
This absolute respect for hierarchy, for their elders and for themselves means that Japanese teams understand the values of excellence. It speaks to them. And when you're French, it's even easier. We share an interest in the art of living. We share a sensitivity for craftsmanship. We also share a culture of luxury. They understand that. For a French person, I would say that it's a little easier.
When you move to a new country, you always have to understand what that country's values are.
And what has been your biggest surprise in terms of Japanese culture in hospitality?
The Japanese are capable of doing things without saying so, in a very intuitive way. That's why they are very good at service, everywhere, in any type of restaurant, anywhere, because they immediately understand what you want, even if they don't tell you directly.
That's what surprises and impresses me, this subtlety of hospitality. Being subtle all the time. They don't do it to show off.
Rightly so, the concept of Omotenashi describes this perfectly. Could you describe how the client's experience at Mandarin Oriental, Tokyo is influenced by Omotenashi?
We talk about omotenashi every day with my Japanese colleagues at Mandarin Oriental. We are an Asian brand. Our history is rooted in Hong Kong and Bangkok. So we are perfectly aligned with Japanese culture.
Asia is our playground. At the hotel, we have the Mandarin Oriental culture with its very high level of service on the one hand. And on the other hand, we have Japanese culture with its very attentive service. I would say that the two come together. It's quite fascinating to be at the Mandarin Oriental in Tokyo. We have an exceptional drive to get things done here. Our employees add an extra level of service and standards to Mandarin Oriental. Where they raise the bar even further is in the execution of what they do for the guest. So, if you come and they know it's your birthday or that you have children, what they manage to prepare in your room is incredible. You won't believe what they can do with their hands.
Sometimes they send me photos where guests are really surprised by what our colleagues do themselves. They are constantly exploring new ideas. For example, we have a colleague in housekeeping who knows how to draw manga. If there are going to be children in the room, he will draw a manga for them featuring them. It's incredible, it goes beyond the simple idea of putting popcorn in the room because there are children. In fact, it's again about doing things that are entirely Japanese.
What aspects of Mandarin Oriental Tokyo do you believe make it stand out in Tokyo’s ultra-competitive luxury hospitality market?
For us, it's food and beverages. We have 12 restaurants and bars here. That's our strength. We have a collection of exceptional dining options, even beyond Tokyo. We have the largest range of dining options in Japan. That's our signature.
Right now, the best known is our Pizza Bar, which was voted the best pizza in Asia and the third best pizza in the world. We have 10,000 people on the waiting list.
We also have a tapas bar, a sushi bar, a French gourmet restaurant, a Chinese restaurant... This hotel has always been able to create very strong dining concepts, and that is our strong suit when compared to all the other hotels, which are also fantastic. Here, it's the F&B. But it's also the trademark of Mandarin Oriental in general. Tokyo is just on another level.
Which new feature or initiative are you currently most excited about—and why?
Since last year, during the Sakura season, the busiest time of the year, our colleagues in the lobby wear kimonos for those 15 days. And it's a lot of work. It takes an hour of preparation every day.
Once again, we put our Japanese colleagues at the centre of things. It started small last year, with one person dressed up in the lobby. Then we began to create experiences around it. Guests would arrive and we would offer them a Sakura-themed cocktail. We developed this Sakura experience to take it to another level.
Now, in the hotel, everyone calls them the ‘kimono ladies’. And there is high demand to come and see them next year. The lobby hosts is an initiative that is very popular because, once again, we have highlighted our Japanese colleagues. And you have to understand that this is not so easy because they are very shy. It seems simple, but no, it's very rare for them to want to put themselves forward, so it can actually be quite a challenge. These are fairly junior colleagues who don't necessarily have the opportunity to showcase themselves.
And to show that I was integrating, I took part in a photo shoot. It took an hour and a half to get me dressed. Talking about integration in Japan is very powerful. When I did it, everyone on the team talked about it because it showed my willingness to integrate. That's why I'm also learning Japanese, alongside the non-Japanese members of the team, with the help of a teacher who comes to the hotel. Doing this is firstly a form of personal development, but also a way of showing our Japanese colleagues that it's up to us to learn the language.
And it shows them that we're making an effort, even though it's difficult to learn.
How does the hotel incorporate Tokyo’s culture into the guest experience?
Through craftsmanship. For example, we have a cake shop on the street level that offers both French and Japanese pastries.
The pizza bar we mentioned earlier was originally a counter for buffets and breakfasts. It has become one of the best pizza restaurants in the world because the chef has worked very hard. Today, it is a two-hour experience where you get to taste eight different pizzas.
We also have a molecular tapas bar. What makes it easy here is that our Japanese colleagues have the necessary skills. That's very rare. Once again, that's what brings us together with France. The pastry and sommelier teams are Japanese. Our pastry chef is French.
Our Japanese colleagues are capable of recreating a level that is sometimes superior to what we do in France. That's the strength of Japan. The Japanese custom is to master one task to perfection and not do ten at once. This may lack flexibility, but that's why you have the best sushi chefs, because you have to practise for five, ten, 20, 30, 40 years. That's Japan. Every day, it gets better and better and better.
How do environmental and social responsibility factor into your definition of luxury at Mandarin Oriental Tokyo?
For our hotel and our group, this is one of the five pillars of governance. Last year, Mandarin Oriental Tokyo was the first establishment in Japan to be certified by one of the highest environmental standards. At Mandarin Oriental hotels, not just in Tokyo, we eliminated all single-use plastics three years ago.
If you go into a room today, the bathroom amenities are fixed to the wall. Although we initially thought this wasn't very luxurious, it has ultimately become accepted. There is no longer any plastic in the mini-bars either.
The next step for Mandarin Oriental is purchasing. We have very strict charters with our suppliers. Plastic, environmental charters, no NFG, no fish that are on endangered lists...
What macro trends in luxury hospitality are you watching closely, and how might they influence your direction in Tokyo?
Today, customers need to be part of an experience. More and more so. We don't just sell hotel rooms and high-end catering. We have to accompany the customer from the moment they make their booking right through to check-out.
Customers increasingly want local inspiration. We offer this through design, architecture and experiences. Such as the tea ceremony or kimonos. There is also kaisuki, a tradition where you break your plate and then glue it back together.
It is a real responsibility to promote Japanese culture. We are fortunate that when you come to Japan, we know what you are looking for. When you are interested in Japan, you come for experiences.
Customers are not going to stay in the hotel; they will leave in the morning and spend the whole day discovering the history of Tokyo in general. This has become a very strong trend.
What legacy do you want to leave at Mandarin Oriental Tokyo—and personally, how do you hope to grow?
We are currently preparing for the hotel's future and finalising our plans to transform everything. We are planning for the next 20 years in terms of design and concept.
This year, we are celebrating our 20th anniversary. Twenty years of excellence and success. We are wondering how to reinvent the hotel. Even though it is doing very well, now is the time to do it, precisely because it is doing so well.
For me, it is a great opportunity to be involved in the planning process and to transform the hotel from top to bottom. We are going to carry out projects one by one to transform all the hotel's spaces. It will be my legacy, in a way. It is an incredible opportunity to celebrate 20 years and reinvent the next 20 years. That is my role in the coming months.
How do you nurture future leaders within the hotel staff—especially considering diverse cultural backgrounds and guest expectations?
At Mandarin Oriental, we have very strong training programmes, starting with what we call the ‘Rising Fan’. We recruit students who have just graduated from hotel management schools or internal colleagues who will follow an 18-month fast-track programme. Here, for example, in the hotel, we have six.
This is essential. We give them programmes. We have a management programme, but also other training programmes within Mandarin that give them transfer opportunities, sending them to different hotels to help out as a task force.
We also prepare them to discover a little bit of the world because for Japanese people, it is sometimes difficult to leave their country. Here, we have many international colleagues since 90% of our customers are international.
Our number one challenge for the future is to train and develop our future managers. There is nothing more important than that.
What’s one key lesson from your career that you still rely on today—and in what situation?
You have to remain humble. The more you travel, the more hotels you work at, the more you learn to be humble, because there is no single solution. I believe you need to be flexible in your thinking. And above all, it's not the same everywhere in the world. You have to adapt. The hospitality industry is about constant adaptation. Adapting to your teams, to your guests. The more you move around, the more you adapt. I would say that's one of the lessons. And if you can get young hoteliers to understand that, you'll win, because it's not an easy thing to do. Every day is different.
I would say that the second thing for a young hotelier is to take their time. It's important. It's not necessarily obvious, and it's not always understood in the moment. We try to tell our teams that you have to be in a role long enough to master it, and try to give the keys to success to the next generation.
Can you tell us a story about you and a mentor that impact your life?
I still have several mentors today. Here's an example: when I was number two at the hotel in New York, I was offered my first position as General Manager in Atlanta. Imagine, you're in New York City. In the hospitality industry, you have New York, Paris, London, Tokyo, Hong Kong. They tell me Atlanta. In the end, this mentor convinced me to leave New York, and it was undoubtedly the best decision. I had to go through that.
That's what you expect from a mentor, that they advise you and say, "It may not seem glamorous, but you'll be in your first position at that level. Go somewhere that's probably less easy, less high-profile, less well-known, but that will allow you to discover your abilities for the role." That's probably the best advice I've ever been given, because I was thinking, why should I accept this job? For me, a mentor is someone who tries to make you think.
Are you, yourself, a mentor today? To what level do you like interact as a mentor?
We have a mentor-mentee programme. Once a year, I am assigned someone. I spend time with them. The way I see it, it's about trying to ask the person lots of questions to get them thinking, to push them a little bit. You always need a little push. Especially when you're younger. Push them to be mobile, to change departments, things like that. Get them out of their comfort zone.
And I follow up with them year after year to see how they're doing. I'm always there if they need to talk. That's a recommendation I make to everyone.
After all, it takes two. Mentor-mentee is also a partnership.
What advice would you have for a young person starting in hospitality?
I would tell them to go for it. It's an exceptional industry. In my opinion, there are two keys to success in the hospitality industry: working harder and being mobile. After that, the rest will inevitably fall into place.
It's a fairly complicated industry with quite a few constraints. So if you have someone who is motivated, who works harder than others, who is mobile, they will have a stellar career.
And learn, learn, learn, learn. Unfortunately, we have a lot of young people leaving the industry because they find it too restrictive. The hospitality industry truly is a vocation, a lifestyle choice. Being a hotelier is one of those professions that remains very unique.
Finally, you really have to like people. You have to enjoy being around people. Both guests and colleagues, otherwise it's impossible. If you want to be alone in your corner, or you're not very good at it, or you don't want to spend time with people, there's no point. Leadership is also about looking after others.
Asia, a recent University of Birmingham graduate with a degree in Creative Writing and Marketing, was introduced to the world of luxury hospitality through her parents' careers as seasoned journalists. Growing up, she learned the ins and outs of the industry by observing their work and experiences. This unique perspective fueled her passion for writing and her appreciation for upscale accommodations. With her academic background and rich upbringing, Asia is poised to craft vivid narratives that capture the elegance and allure of luxury hospitality.
