The Authentic Heart of a Destination
With 22 hotels and resorts across 18 countries, Raffles recently debuted in London, Boston, and Doha, with upcoming openings in Jaipur, Sentosa, and Jeddah. Meet the charming Omer Acar, who leads this storied hotel brand and shares how Raffles was born, his preferred escape, and which team has the most fun.
Omer Acar is CEO of Raffles Hotels & Resorts and Fairmont Hotels & Resorts. Founded in Singapore in 1887, Raffles hotels feature a renowned legacy of gracious service and are the authentic heart of a destination. An eminent specialist in luxury hospitality, Acar has held positions with Four Seasons and Harrods, in addition to serving as General Manager of the Ritz in Paris and General Manager of Le Royal Monceau – Raffles Paris.
Can you tell us the reasons you chose to head up Raffles Hotels & Resorts?
Being a highly passionate person, I often lead with my emotions. I have always loved the Raffles brand and was honored to be appointed CEO last year. Not only is Raffles one of the most storied hospitality brands in existence today, but it’s also a part of my personal history. I was the General Manager of Le Royal Monceau - Raffles Paris from 2011- 2014 and prior to joining Accor Group I was with Katara Hospitality and spent 10 years managing a portfolio that included some of the world’s best Raffles. I have seen firsthand that Raffles was not just a hotel brand, but for our guests represents beauty, inspiration, and culture. To be able to continue to help shape this incredible brand was a call I could not refuse.
How and why was the brand born? From the beginning
The brand was born through Raffles Singapore, which opened its doors in 1887 and immediately redefined what a hotel could be, serving as the epicenter of the Golden Age of Travel. Raffles Singapore played host to the most notable names of the time and there was nowhere more glamorous to be. Think Elizabeth Taylor posted up at The Long Bar, Ava Gardner walking the halls, or Charlie Chaplin enjoying a meal in his suite with his brother. Beyond its most fabulous clientele, what really made Raffles stand apart at the time was its service. Raffles Singapore was the first hotel in the world to offer butler service, and in fact, the first butlers at Raffles Singapore lived in the suites with guests in order to best attend to their every need. Butler service is a legacy our hotels and resorts still proudly carry on today – although they no longer stay with guests!
Which of your restaurants and bars would you tell our members not to miss?
The Long Bar at Raffles Singapore is a tradition and is where the Singapore Sling cocktail was invented back in 1915. I’m also very excited by what Chef George Mendes is doing at Amar, the signature restaurant at Raffles Boston. Chef Mendes created a menu featuring Portuguese cuisine, which is a nod to his own heritage as well as Boston’s Portuguese community. His pasteis de nata are out of this world. Additionally, Chef Mauro Colagreco’s namesake restaurant at Raffles London at The OWO takes diners on a journey through the English countryside. For me, the best culinary experience activates all the senses – everything from the scent in the restaurant to the lighting and the temperature of the room. Ambiance is very important, and this is something we are focused on across all our culinary experiences.
There are now over 20 Raffles hotels and resorts around the world. What would you say the common thread is among these properties?
Raffles is all about inspiration and culture. As mentioned, we are world-renowned for our pioneering butler service, and we’re incredibly proud of the highly personalized and emotionally intuitive experience that our butlers create for all of our guests. I always say that once you’ve experienced Raffles butler service, you’re never going to want to stay anywhere else. As a nod back to Raffles Singapore, all our hotels and resorts also feature their own Long Bar, which is designed to reflect the destination. All our properties also feature a Writers Lounge, in homage to Raffles Singapore’s literary history, having played host over the years to some of the world’s most notable wordsmiths from Rudyard Kipling to Somerset Maugham. Additionally, across our portfolio, we focus our programming around offering authentic, one-of-a-kind cultural experiences. In fact, our hotels themselves represent hubs of culture in a destination. Raffles Europejski in Warsaw is home to a collection of 500 modern and contemporary artworks by over 120 artists and Le Royal Monceau - Raffles Paris has a cinema with custom programming.
Which of the Raffles hotels is your preferred escape destination and why?
This is like asking to pick a favorite child! For a true escape, I love Raffles Bali. With only 32 villas, it’s a very intimate resort where you can focus on disconnecting. I love to do yoga and there is no better place in the world to do it from. I also recently visited Raffles Udaipur and was blown away by its beauty.
What is the secret to your success as a hotelier?
Working with amazing people and teams. It’s all about motivating and empowering people beyond expectations, but also having fun.
Are your hotels and resorts child-friendly?
We love our youngest guests! In fact, for our hotel teams, I think they have the most fun when it comes to creating for this group. It’s important for Raffles that kids learn something when they’re staying with us. We want to offer experiences where we take kids out of their regular habitat and introduce them to the local culture, whether it’s by having them interact with local animals or teaching them how to cook a new dish. Transformation happens when you’re outside of your regular environment.
What is your personal definition of luxury?
The ability to create desire. To offer an experience that is so unique and exceptional that it becomes covetable.
What goes into the creation of your wellbeing experiences?
We want to take wellness beyond the treatment room. At Raffles, we view wellbeing as a lifestyle, rooted in movement, nutrition, and recovery. Looking to the future, we want to shape the Raffles wellness experience to focus on prolonging life, not only by years, but looking at how to help guests live those years better. We are working on studying the market and finding things that are new and innovative. For example, Raffles London at The OWO features a partnership with Pillar Wellbeing, which was founded by the elite performance coach Harry Jameson, and which oversees training and health programming throughout the hotel’s active wellness spaces.
What are some examples of how Raffles hotels interact with local communities?
Our hotels are the vibrant and authentic heart of a destination, and we want to empower and encourage our hotel teams to give back to their local communities. It’s important that our hotels are able to see the benefits and feel the impact of their actions reflected back in their local communities.
What are you most excited about for 2024 and beyond?
We started the year by moving into a beautiful new office in New York City, the new global headquarters for the Raffles brand. It represents the start of a new, exciting chapter for Raffles, and it’s been fantastic to bring together team members from different backgrounds and cultures. Coming off significant debuts in London and Boston last fall, there is a lot of momentum behind Raffles, and we are focused on continuing to find great locations and destinations. For example, a Raffles ski resort is on my wish list – I want to bring the European après ski experience to North America. In 2024, we will be opening in Jaipur, which is our second hotel in India, joining Raffles Udaipur. The hotel is a 50 suite property and was designed to highlight the best of the region’s craftmanship.
What do you want the Four Hundred member to know about Raffles Hotels?
We will inspire and delight you, that is my promise. If we don’t – call me!
Contributor — Four Hundred by Design