Name: Eric Lemaire
Title: Area general manager
Company, city: Sofitel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills; Los Angeles, Calif.
Number of employees: 255
Recent project: We refreshed the look of our signature California- French Estérel Restaurant and transformed our outdoor patio to a whimsical French garden patio.
First job: Night auditor for an AccorHotels’ property in Paris
Little-known fact about you: I have a passion for vintage pick-up trucks from the 1950s and 60s and hope to one day own one.

Your Business

Essential business philosophy: I strive to maintain the proper balance between our ambassadors, guests and shareholders. Although it is not easy, it is a key to success in today’s working environment.

Best way to keep a competitive edge: Creating an open and innovative working environment for our 255 ambassadors, allowing everyone to take risks and be creative

Yardstick of success: Observe and adapt to the ever-changing end goal to success, such as our environment, the way people think and communicate, and how people work together.

Eric Lemaire as a Traveler

What is the most important item you take when traveling? My phone

How do you spend your time on board? I connect to the internet for work or take time to reflect and recharge.

What is your favorite restaurant in the world? It is hard to name one. It can be a 5-star restaurant or a small café and still have the same experience, based on the food, the place, the company and atmosphere.

What is your favorite destination in the world? Saint-Malo in France, a small coastal city in Brittany full of history with ancient, attractive buildings

About Sofitel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills

What can premium travelers expect from a stay at Sofitel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills? Sofitel promises luxurious French hospitality to all guests; we want them to feel welcome and at home and to have a magnifique experience from the moment they arrive.

We make it a point to recognize and learn about our guests and create a special relationship with each of them to make their stay unforgettable. Cousu main service means an employee goes above and beyond daily duties to please hotel guests. For example, a restaurant server who learns about a couple celebrating their anniversary by talking to them sends a bottle of Champagne and chocolate-covered strawberries to their guestroom as an after-dinner surprise.

We offer all our guests the exclusive membership loyalty program Le Club by AccorHotels. Each member receives benefits and perks such as complimentary welcome drink, early check-in and late checkout, free room upgrade, complimentary newspapers and more.

Tell our readers about the hotel’s meeting/event space and unique amenities. Our hotel offers more than 20,000 square feet of combined meeting/ event spaces, from our signature ballroom that hosts events of up to 400 guests to our French garden patio, Le Jardin, known for its live flower décor and celebrity parties.

Our eight meeting spaces include two boardrooms with natural lighting on the second floor. On the ground floor we can transform a restaurant, bar and patio for any banquet or social event. Our outside pool deck hosts business luncheons, presentations and even TV tapings.

We offer an unparalleled banquet cuisine for receptions, meetings and conferences that features Sofitel’s signature “De-Light” menu — well-balanced, low-calorie and portion-controlled meals — for health-conscious guests. Other amenities include farm-to-table cuisine at Estérel, live performances and mixology drinks at Riviera 31 lounge bar, relaxing treatments at SoSPA, state-of-the-art fitness facility at SoFIT and beauty services at Le Salon.

What can travelers expect from the hotel and the Sofitel brand in the future? Sofitel, AccorHotels’ authentic luxury brand, blends local culture and French art de vivre to create magnificent moments for international travelers seeking a uniquely elegant experience. Guests staying at Sofitel’s addresses all over the world enjoy design, culture, gastronomy and wellness. We will continue to roll out our digital offerings at our hotel and expand upon our existing guest services, such as check-in time, room service and more.