Many hotels promise memorable stays. Far fewer leave guests with a genuine understanding of the place they have visited. The difference often lies in the details that cannot be replicated: the stories reflected in the architecture, the character of the people who bring a space to life, the rhythm of the surrounding community, and the experiences that reveal a destination’s true personality. Hospitality becomes far more meaningful when it creates a sense of connection rather than simply providing accommodation.
Alexandre Glauser has spent more than three decades building that philosophy across some of the world’s most diverse hospitality destinations. From Switzerland and Thailand to Egypt, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, the Maldives, Bangladesh, and Kenya, his career has been defined by hotel openings, brand development, operational leadership, and the creation of distinctive guest experiences. Today, as General Manager of Kwetu Nairobi, Curio Collection by Hilton, he brings together global expertise and local appreciation to shape a luxury hotel in Nairobi that celebrates the city’s culture, natural surroundings, and individuality.
A Leadership Journey Across Continents
Alexandre’s career spans more than three decades across Europe, Asia, and Africa, shaping a leadership philosophy rooted in adaptability, cultural understanding, and trust. Beginning his professional journey in Geneva in finance before transitioning into hospitality operations and Food & Beverage, he steadily built expertise across multiple disciplines before advancing into hotel leadership.
Having worked in Switzerland, Thailand, Egypt, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, the Maldives, Bangladesh, and Kenya, Alexandre learned that effective leadership cannot follow a universal formula. Each destination requires an understanding of its unique culture, people, and environment. His approach emphasizes listening first, providing clear direction, and empowering teams with the confidence to take ownership of their work.
His diverse background across finance, operations, Food & Beverage, hotel openings, repositioning projects, and commercial leadership has also given him a holistic perspective on hospitality. He believes that exceptional guest experiences, engaged teams, and strong commercial performance are deeply interconnected, and when these elements work in harmony, they create the foundation for long-term success.
Drawn to a Destination with Character
What attracted Alexandre to Kwetu Nairobi was its unmistakable sense of identity. Unlike properties that can be replicated across different markets, Kwetu reflects the spirit of its surroundings through its architecture, history, cultural influences, and connection to Nairobi itself.
Situated alongside the lush Karura Forest while remaining within one of Africa’s most vibrant cities, the property offers a distinctive blend of nature, culture, and luxury. For Alexandre, whose career has included opening, repositioning, and developing unique hospitality destinations, the opportunity to continue shaping Kwetu’s story was particularly compelling.
His curiosity about Kenya continues to fuel his passion for the role. Whether exploring the tea-growing regions around Tigoni, experiencing Nairobi’s cultural and artistic communities, discovering local cuisine, or observing everyday life, he continually uncovers new dimensions of the country. These experiences inspire the way he approaches guest experiences and help ensure that the hotel remains deeply connected to its destination.
Creating a Place That Feels Like Home
For Alexandre, the philosophy of “Our Place, Your Home” extends far beyond a brand message. He believes that the feeling of being at home is created through genuine human connections rather than formality or perfection.
Guests feel welcomed when they are remembered, understood, and cared for in ways that feel natural rather than scripted. While maintaining the service standards associated with Hilton, Alexandre encourages his team to bring authenticity and personality into every interaction.
The design of the property also reinforces this philosophy. From intimate gathering spaces and lush gardens to diverse dining experiences and private retreats, Kwetu offers guests the freedom to shape their own experience. Some seek conversation and exploration, while others value peace and privacy. Understanding those differences is central to delivering meaningful hospitality.
Over time, Kenya itself has deepened Alexandre’s appreciation of this concept. The relationships he has built with colleagues and the wider community have transformed the country into a place he personally associates with home, giving the philosophy an even deeper significance.
Where Destination and Experience Become One
Alexandre believes that a strong sense of place has become one of the defining elements of memorable hospitality. While guests can find luxury accommodations and excellent service in many parts of the world, what they cannot find everywhere is the unique character of Nairobi.
Karura Forest plays an important role in shaping that experience. As one of the world’s largest urban forests, it offers visitors a rare opportunity to experience nature while remaining within a major metropolitan center. Its presence influences the atmosphere of the property and introduces guests to a side of Nairobi they may not have expected.
For Alexandre, a sense of place extends beyond geography. It is reflected in food, art, design, storytelling, culture, and human interaction. Every element should contribute to an authentic understanding of the destination. Even spaces such as the 1893 Brew Bar celebrate Kenya’s rich coffee heritage and help guests connect with local traditions.
He believes that successful lifestyle hotel in Nairobi should immerse guests in their destination rather than create experiences that could exist anywhere in the world.
Luxury for a New Generation of Travelers
Alexandre sees luxury hospitality entering a new chapter, where traditional definitions are being reshaped by changing traveler expectations.
While exceptional service, comfort, and elegant surroundings remain important, today’s guests increasingly value personalization, authenticity, meaningful experiences, and the ability to make the most of their time. Luxury is becoming less about excess and more about relevance and connection.
Technology will play a significant role in this transformation by simplifying communication and enhancing personalization throughout the guest journey. Artificial intelligence, in particular, is expected to accelerate these developments. However, Alexandre remains convinced that technology will complement rather than replace human hospitality.
He also believes sustainability will become an expected operational standard rather than a differentiator. At the same time, travelers will increasingly seek accommodations that help them connect with the places they visit. In his view, hotels should serve as gateways to understanding a destination rather than simply providing a place to stay.
One Story Told Through Many Experiences
Managing a property as diverse as Kwetu requires more than overseeing individual departments. Alexandre believes consistency comes from building capable teams, establishing clear standards, and ensuring every colleague understands the broader guest experience.
Each outlet within the hotel has its own distinct identity. Meko, Upepo, Zabe, and the 1893 Brew Bar are intentionally designed to offer different atmospheres and experiences. Yet despite their differences, they remain united by the same commitment to quality, attention to detail, and genuine hospitality.
Rather than viewing operations through departmental boundaries, Alexandre focuses on the complete guest journey. Guests experience the property as a whole, not as a collection of separate functions.
By helping teams understand both operational expectations and the larger story the hotel aims to tell, he creates an environment where consistency emerges naturally. For Alexandre, excellence is achieved when every interaction contributes to a seamless and memorable guest experience.
Crafting Distinctive Hospitality Experiences
With extensive experience in hotel openings, rebranding initiatives, acquisitions, and repositioning projects across multiple markets, Alexandre has learned that the foundation of a successful luxury lifestyle hotel lies in a clear and distinctive identity. In his view, a property cannot attempt to appeal to everyone. Success begins with understanding what makes a hotel unique, identifying its ideal guest, and creating compelling reasons for guests to choose it over competing alternatives.
His leadership journey has included opening and developing properties across Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and the Maldives, including leading Alila Kothaifaru Maldives through its pre-opening phase and early months of operation. These experiences reinforced the importance of aligning operations, people, commercial strategy, and guest experience from the outset.
Alexandre also believes that personality is essential to the success of a lifestyle hotel. A brand should not exist solely in marketing materials or brand guidelines. It must come to life through every aspect of the guest experience, from service interactions and design to food, music, partnerships, and curated experiences. Ultimately, however, strong positioning must deliver commercial results. A compelling story only becomes sustainable when guests value it enough to return, recommend the property, and choose it repeatedly.
Empowering People to Deliver Excellence
For Alexandre, exceptional guest experiences are inseparable from exceptional employee experiences. He firmly believes that a hotel’s service standards can only be sustained when employees feel valued, supported, and empowered.
His leadership philosophy centers on creating environments where team members understand expectations, feel trusted to make decisions, and have opportunities for professional growth. Rather than simply providing instructions, he focuses on empowering employees to take ownership of their work, contribute ideas, and develop confidence in their abilities.
Throughout his career, this people-first approach has delivered meaningful results. During his tenure at Amari Havodda Maldives, employee turnover was reduced by 50 percent while guest satisfaction improved significantly. Experiences like these strengthened his belief that investing in people and achieving strong business performance are not competing objectives but mutually reinforcing priorities.
One of the aspects of leadership Alexandre finds most rewarding is witnessing individuals grow beyond the positions in which they started. Hospitality offers a wide range of career pathways, and he takes great satisfaction in helping people discover talents they may not have previously recognized and supporting their professional development.
Creating Opportunities for the Next Generation
Alexandre views youth development as both a responsibility and an investment in the future of the hospitality industry. Having built an international career through hospitality, he believes industry leaders have an obligation to create similar opportunities for emerging talent.
This philosophy is reflected in Kwetu’s partnership with Mukuru Promotion Centre, a recipient of support through the 2026 Hilton Global Foundation. Through this collaboration, the hotel hosts vocational training graduates as interns, providing them with opportunities to apply their skills in a professional hospitality environment and gain valuable workplace experience.
For Alexandre, the value of such initiatives extends beyond exposure to the industry. These programmes create meaningful pathways from education and training to employment while helping young professionals develop confidence, communication skills, discipline, and workplace readiness.
He also emphasizes the diversity of career opportunities within hospitality. Beyond traditional front-of-house roles, the industry requires professionals in engineering, finance, marketing, revenue management, technology, housekeeping, culinary arts, and leadership. Helping young people recognize these possibilities and begin their professional journeys is something he considers both important and rewarding.
Alexandre also sees talent development as an essential component of sustainability. In his view, hotels should contribute not only through environmental stewardship but also by creating long-term value for the communities around them. As Africa’s hospitality sector continues to expand, developing future industry leaders becomes increasingly important.
Creating Impact Beyond the Guest Experience
Alexandre believes that sustainability delivers the greatest impact when it becomes part of daily operations rather than existing as a separate initiative. At Kwetu, responsible practices are integrated into the property’s infrastructure, systems, and operational decisions.
The hotel utilizes solar energy, rooftop solar water heating, LPG-fired boilers, smart building management systems, occupancy-based lighting and climate controls, and an electric vehicle fleet supported by on-site charging facilities. These investments are designed to reduce resource consumption while maintaining the high standards expected of a luxury property.
Water management is another key area of focus. Kwetu sources water from an on-site borehole and purifies it through reverse osmosis technology. Department-level monitoring systems help track consumption and encourage efficient use. In addition, the hotel treats all wastewater on-site and reuses it to irrigate its botanical gardens, creating a circular approach that minimizes waste and maximizes resource efficiency.
Building a Legacy Beyond the Stay
Alexandre’s idea of what Kwetu stands for goes way beyond just doing well in business and being recognized in the hospitality sector. While good performance, customer satisfaction, and recognition are key because these are what will allow continued investment into the hotel and into the people working there, he thinks that true legacy can be measured by much more than that, by how guests feel after they’ve left the hotel.
Kwetu’s nomination as one of the winners of the 2026 Tripadvisor’s Travelers’ Choice Best of the Best awards is definitely encouraging. It’s one of the greatest distinctions granted by Tripadvisor, and the fact that Kwetu made it into that group that accounts for only one percent of hotels worldwide, is especially significant since it testifies to the consistency of the experience guests had there.
At the same time, he sees recognition as the point where work only begins and motivation to do better. Being nominated makes the hotel raise its standards and listen to customers even more.
