Rixos Premium Dubrovnik
Interview with Ayhan Başçı / Cluster General Manager You have held various management positions in Rixos Group for many years. Could you tell us a bit about yourself and your career?
I was born in Ankara on December 5, 1969. I finished my primary education in Ankara and completed my bachelor’s degree on Tourism and Hotel Management in Mersin. I also started to work at Hilton hotel’s F&B department. Between 1988-1993, I moved to the UK to pursue my career with the same group after I graduated from university. Between 1994-1999, I worked as a waiter at Celebrity Cruises which had Miami as their main port. My interest and passion for the F&B department reached its peak with my experiences at Hilton and Cruise during university.
Between 1999-2000, I returned to Ankara and worked as F&B manager at Bilkent Hotel. I accepted the offer from Mr. Hüseyin Özer, owner of Sofra Restaurant London, and worked as Sofra International Operation Manager in the UK. This important step in my career was not long lived but it eventually led me to open my own shop. After opening and grappling with MASA Restaurant for three years, I received an offer from Mr. Engin Efe in 2007 after the phone call and recommendation of Mr. Nafiz Ünal (Rixos Premium Astana GM). In 2007, I became the F&B Director of Rixos Libertas Dubrovnik and started this long adventure. After working together with Mr. Akif Tamince in various positions such as the Purchasing Director, Operation Manager and Hotel Manager, I became GM in 2014 and have been doing my best to manage our CGM Dubrovnik and Davos Hotels since 2007 with the same passion and love I felt on my first day. I am married and have 3 sons. My family lives in the UK. I am a dual Turkish-British citizen.
2) As one of Rixos’ gateways to Europe, Rixos Premium Dubrovnik is a unique hotel with its closeness to the old town and its amazing views. Such a location, combined with the service-oriented principle of the group, makes it one of the most premier destinations of its region. What is such an important hotel’s management approach?
As all my colleagues know well, I would still want to work at a hotel if I would be born again. I really enjoy my work. I also do my best to encourage my colleagues to enjoy their work as well. Sometimes I become their best friend and sometimes I become their stern manager. Before anything, I try to be a decent human being. In my approach to management, our guests are the highest priority. I continuously work toward eliminating the word “No” in all of my workplaces. Everything is geared towards crafting special moments, tastes and experiences for our guests. A happy guest makes me forget how tired I am. Of course, we have to make our boss happy at the end of the year as well. For this, I always rely on the numbers and work with a goal-oriented mentality.
3) Last season the hotel entered a total renovation process. With every new project, Rixos’ quality is acknowledged around the world, just like it is here. What were the projects and changes undertaken during this process? What awaits guests from all around the world at Rixos Premium Dubrovnik?
We have been working on this project for quite some time and it is finally done. As we worked to radiate the Rixos Hotel’s vision completely, our hotel reached its well-deserved number one position in our region. With its prized location, old town, peace, safety and naturalness, Dubrovnik is a city of love. In this city, the Rixos Premium Dubrovnik brand became a destination where you could experience lifestyle, luxury, good food, diverse entertainment, well being and sincere hospitality at its highest level. With this in mind, I suggest you look at the Anjana SPA, Umi Tepanyaki, the Libertas Beach, the Libertas Fish Restaurant, the Sports Bar, the entertainment programs, sports activities, the presentation of its food and their taste, treatments with organic oils and our meticulously planned wellbeing fitness programs. After all, we promised to really become your personal hotel and leave you with unforgettable experiences once you depart.
4) On the other hand, as we talk about the new norms when it comes to health, what are Rixos Premium Dubrovnik’s preparations and precautions on hygiene?
Our expectation is that hygiene requirements will continue with the same strictness in the future during the normalization period after the pandemic. We are complying with the rules and expectations of Croatian officials. During this period, we restructured our quality and training department and did not release any of our personnel. We received the ISO 22000. 9001, 14000 certificates. We are actively following all the necessary measurements at our hotel and reinforcing the training every month to combat the pandemic. Furthermore, our new sports manager, our spa manager and our fitness instructors prepared special programs. Nordic Walk, Billiard, Table Tennis, Table Football, Biking, Water Sports, Sports and Eating Well Itinerary, 100 different organic tea lounge, indoor and outdoor pools are some of the reinforcing activities I can list.
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