Opening this September, Nobu Hotel Barcelona has appointed Laurence Dubey as general manager and regional director. Dubey will be responsible for directing all hotel operations whilst ensuring the Nobu Hotel 5-star standard of service and guest experience is implemented and maintained throughout.

In this exclusive interview, the Swiss-born GM talks about her management style, the importance of open communication and embracing the local culture.

TD: Congratulations! How do you feel about the appointment?

LD: I’m thrilled to be the General Manager and Regional Director for Nobu Hotel Barcelona! It’s such an exciting launch for Nobu Hotels and it also happens to be in one of my favourite cities.

This is an exciting launch for our company and Barcelona is one of the coolest cities in Europe. We have put together a fabulous team of Catalans, Spaniards and International players for this project, some with previous Nobu experience and others eager to join our brand. The local community has already embraced us and we can´t wait to offer a genuine Catalan experience to our Nobu guests.

What’s your management style? How will you ensure the ‘Nobu’ standards are met?

Leading a team towards excellent service while keeping it fun for them is always a delicate balance! We already have a great team who I trust will ensure the highest level of service is maintained throughout the hotel with the Nobu spirit the brand has become so well known for.

“My style is to focus on passion”

My style is to focus on passion and two-way open communication. Firstly, we select colleagues who have a genuine drive and positive attitude towards guest service. Then we provide them with solid training. Finally, we ensure that they receive real constant feedback on their performance and future growth and allow them to share their experience and suggestions very openly.

We have a strong family culture and we have many Nobu colleagues who stay with us for decades because of how we treat each other. The old saying “Happy Employees equal Happy Customers or Guests” is very real and I hope that we will continue to exemplify this at Nobu Hotel Barcelona.

What’s unique to the Nobu brand? What should guests expect with Nobu Barcelona?

One of the most important aspects of a Nobu Hotel is embracing the local culture and ensuring a true sense of locality. The design of the hotel naturally takes inspiration from the Catalan capital while sticking to Nobu’s signature standard of sleek Japanese minimalism.

“A sense of Japanese tranquillity”

We wanted to ensure Nobu Hotel Barcelona evokes a sense of Japanese tranquillity and respite from the bustling cosmopolitan city of Barcelona. And of course, no Nobu Hotel is complete without a Nobu Restaurant; this will be the first one in the city paying homage to local flavours and traditional Japanese cuisine. The hotel will also have a Japanese style tapas bar Kozara which offers an entirely new dimension to traditional Spanish tapas.

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