Mansi Vagt
Mansi Vagt
Center stage launch party. Credit Phoebe Fox
Rema performing at the Center Stage launch party
The Global Vice President and Brand Leader of Fairmont Hotels & Resorts tells us about a unique new partnership with the world’s most famous recording studio, and about helping to pave the way for the next generation of women in the industry
Mansi Vagt, Global Vice President and Brand Leader of Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, vividly recalls her first trip to Egypt with her travel-mad parents at the age of nine. “I remember every minute of it,” she says, “from the pyramids, to the hotel we stayed at, and the Nile River, that trip is literally seared into my brain!”
It was youthful experiences such as these that sparked her passion for exploring and connecting to other cultures, whether through food, music or art. “It’s definitely part of why I’m in this industry, for sure,” she says. Having spent around 10 of her 15 years in sales and marketing with luxury hospitality brands on the digital side of things, managing the online presence and tactics for brands such as Swissotel and Raffles, today the Toronto-based Mansi works on global brand strategy to help drive awareness and momentum for the Fairmont brand, which boasts over 80 luxury hotels in 29 countries.
It was at the Fairmont San Francisco that Tony Bennett first crooned “I Left My Heart in San Francisco”; and it was at another branch, at Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth, Canada, that John and Yoko staged their famous (or infamous) Bed-In for Peace in suite 1742. Music, Mansi emphasizes, “has always been very much a part of Fairmont’s DNA”. Which is fitting, because now, in conjunction with the world-famous Abbey Road Studios, Fairmont are offering the musical stars of tomorrow – especially those who might struggle to get a platform – a unique opportunity to nurture their talent, with help from musical mentors.
Center Stage is a new three-year program that gives emerging artists 1,000 hours of studio time at Abbey Road and 1,000 hours of suite time at 20 specially selected Fairmont Hotels, including the Fairmont Singapore and Fairmont Le Montreux Palace, Switzerland. “It's been three years in the making,” says Mansi, “so to see it come to life is just incredible.”
“We’re focusing on the next generation of talent,” she says. “They're constantly traveling, so giving them 1,000 hours of suite time in hotels that have some kind of musical history might even help them come up with that next big song! That’s the goal.”
Another goal is to focus on genres “you wouldn't expect,” whether Afrobeat or K-pop. Mansi namechecks the acclaimed Nigerian singer and rapper Rema, whose music blends African, Arabian, and Indian influences, and who helped kick off the launch at London’s swanky Savoy, itself a Fairmont Hotel. It’ll also be a proper partnership with Abbey Road, with all the logistics involved. “There will be some heavy lifting on both sides, and rightfully so, because we want to do it right.”
Her own route into the industry was through marketing, at a time where “honestly, nobody knew what digital marketing was! It wasn't taught in school, and we were just figuring it out as we went along, during a time when the industry itself was changing.”
She’s passionate about mentoring: “I've been so lucky in my career to have some unbelievable mentors in my life, that really helped shape my path. I still need them, and I still look to them. And I have a variety of them. I don't think I ever had just one, I don't think it works that way. But I also have a responsibility now to give back to the next generation of women who are coming up and pave a way for them as well.” She’s still on the board of Lean In Canada, with its aim of empowering women in the workplace, offering training and webinars, especially with female immigrants coming into Canada, to help get them on their feet.
Attracting talent remains the biggest challenge for the industry, she says, during a post-COVID era that provoked something of a ‘Great Resignation’: “We’re going through a bit of a reckoning. We need to make sure people feel like they're a part of a family and that their careers are a journey with us. Fairmount was always known for being the brand that once people joined, didn't ever want to leave. So for us, more so than perhaps other brands or industries that had to sort of reinvent themselves, it feels like doubling down.” The Pandemic gave her time to reflect too, principally on the importance of work-life balance, and connecting with her family: “Mummy doesn't want to be on a plane every other week!”
The best piece of business advice she’s been given is “Play the long game. It's wonderful to have passion and fire. But I do think it’s really important to take your time. Work hard, but understand that it's not going to happen overnight. You only get perspective over time.”
Hospitality is clearly in her blood. “I love having people over. I went to chef school, I love cooking, I love making cocktails. Even at a very young age, we were the apartment or house that everyone wanted to come to for good food and drink… I love the idea of this industry because we get to make people happy every day. What's better than that?”