Photos © Marc Landert
By Sylvie Macquet
Nothing in his background seemed to point him toward hospitality. Yet Marc Landert, a seasoned manager, knew how to seize the opportunities that came his way.
“A young person with a future in hospitality is one who sometimes goes against the grain of technology.” Against the grain? That approach has suited Marc Landert well. At 33, he is now the director of the Beau-Rivage in Neuchâtel, a five-star hotel — an impressive achievement.
Marc Landert is opposed to the “always more” mindset. “The Earth is like a bathtub — you can’t keep filling it endlessly,” he says, explaining the need for a different economic model. He likes simple things, he likes people, and he likes to be of service. In his view, people will eventually grow tired of everything being digitalised. Digitalisation has brought positive effects, such as making bookings easier and more numerous. But it should not make us forget the value of human contact.
A guest will return if they felt at home at the Beau-Rivage, if the waiter took the time to explain the menu instead of handing over a cold tablet with a QR code. For that reason, he admires Badrutt’s in St. Moritz, a historic hotel whose concierge remains at the entrance, with a natural sense of service. Marc Landert explains that “working in hospitality is difficult, but the profession gives back generously. You just need to spend time on the ground to learn the ropes. And surround yourself well in order to work in trust.” Trust was also shown to him by his former employers, and currently by Thomas Maechler, owner of the Beau-Rivage.
One might think Marc Landert skipped several steps. “No, just a story of chance!” he says modestly. After high school with a focus on biology and chemistry, he was headed for banking. Then military service caught up with him. As an army captain, he found himself in charge of 200 men, almost all older than he was. “It makes a man! But when the job is done well, you earn respect.” He was about to enrol in police school to continue his military experience. But a friend invited him to a hospitality school party. He was drawn in by the atmosphere and, to be fair, by how easy it seemed to find a job.
After hotel school, he was suddenly appointed to run the Grand Hotel des Rasses (three stars). Then he became the youngest Swiss director of an upper-upscale four-star hotel, the Hôtel Nendaz 4 vallées & SPA, and since September 2020 he has been at the helm of the Beau-Rivage Hôtel in Neuchâtel. Marc Landert has made the most of his chance, and he continues to nurture it: “My biggest challenge is finding the right words to build customer loyalty. It takes time. I know I’ve won when clients say, ‘We’re going to Beau-Rivage to see Landert.’” Another challenge emerged 15 months ago: keeping the property running without its usual business clientele. “We succeeded: today, nearly 80% of our guests are leisure travellers, and soon we should see our B2B customers return.”
But in the end, his greatest pride is having found a personal balance. Working just ten minutes from home, he does not hesitate, if he can step away from the hotel, to spend time with his wife or go and cheer on his children at hockey. He himself takes part in a “championship of wooden sticks,” as he calls his hockey team’s sporting matches. This man with a “not very corporate” way of speaking has carved out a place for himself in Swiss hospitality. There is little doubt he will go even further…
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