Hospitality Design - July 2012 - 124

Chris Hunsberger
Executive Vice President, Product and Innovation, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts
Clockwise from top left: Four Seasons’ Chris Hunsberger; a junior suite at the Four Seasons Hotel Hangzhou at West Lake; a model guest bathroom for the new flagship Four Seasons Hotel Toronto, debuting in October; and the bar at Wit & Wisdom, a Tavern by Michael Mina, at the recently opened Four Seasons Hotel Baltimore, serves handcrafted, locally inspired cocktails.

Many may not realize it, but Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts pioneered a number of the hotel industry’s service initiatives. For instance, it was the first brand to introduce now-standard items such as bath amenities (including little shampoo bottles), robes, and hairdryers in guestrooms. It was also the first to offer 24/7 in-room dining and European-style concierge services. Now, 50 years later, Four Seasons is looking to evolve that innovative focus with Chris Hunsberger, in the newly created position of executive vice president, product and innovation, leading the charge. “We live in a very competitive luxury hotel space and this is an opportunity to really differentiate ourselves with our key competitors, whether it’s for our guests, owners, or employees,” says Hunsberger, a 30-year veteran of Four Seasons. The process is a kit of moving parts, and he’s the link between them—from operations and F&B to design and construction and various stakeholders and consultants. Overseeing these grassroots ideations, and the 80 hotels that act as laboratories, is an art form: “One of the reasons Katie [Taylor, Four Seasons’ CEO] asked me to take on the role is that I give people some space to take the right kind of risk.” If an idea seems

too farfetched, instead of being quick to judge, he says they “greenhouse” it, giving it time to grow. “We are writing the book as we go,” he says. So far, so good. New initiatives include a room service menu with dedicated items delivered in 15 minutes; spas that stay open after hours for late-night massages, drinks, and pool time; and next on the docket, a new lobby experience that connects the arrival to the guestroom with technology, as well as new prototypes for banquet and meeting spaces. On the F&B front, not only is the company continuing its farm to table push, but it’s now implementing a farm to bar program, where specialty drinks acquire a local spin. That goes for the design as well. “There was a time when hotel restaurants were an amenity. Our belief is that if the local community embraces the restaurant and bar, guests will be much more excited to be in that space,” he says. To ensure this happens, the company is only enlisting firms who specialize in F&B to design the spaces. “The basics haven’t changed; we still believe that service is critical to experience,” Hunsberger says. “We are taking that great foundation Four Seasons has built, and thinking about the future.” hd

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Hospitality Design - July 2012