Jean-Francois Gouvrit has been appointed General Manager at Ritz-Carlton, Sharm El Sheikh
Veteran hotelier Jean-Francois Gouvrit is the new general manager of The Ritz-Carlton, Sharm El Sheikh, announced Pascal Duchauffour, area vice-president, Europe and Middle East of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company L.L.C. Mr. Gouvrit brings a wealth of expertise cultivated over more than 15 years in hotel management within Asia and Europe. Before joining The Ritz-Carlton, Sharm El Sheikh, Mr. Gouvrit was the general manager for the 244-room Ritz-Carlton, Istanbul which was voted in 2009 as the "Best Overseas Business Hotel" by the readers of Condé Nast Traveller. Mr. Gouvrit began his hotel career with Kokusai 21 Hotel, Nagano, Japan in 1992 as a banquet waiter and working his way to an appointment as the Maitre D'hôtel and technical advisor at Takanawa Price Hotel, Tokyo, Japan. His experience in Japan led him to consecutive leadership roles in the food and beverage divisions at The Ritz-Carlton hotels in Osaka, Shanghai and Singapore. Mr. Gouvrit was later appointed consulting and executive assistant manager of food and beverage at La Maison in Shanghai and The Leela Palace in Bangalore, India (a Kempinski affiliate.) In 2004 he returned to The Ritz-Carlton as executive assistant manager of The Ritz-Carlton, Osaka, and was later promoted to hotel manager roles for the openings of The Ritz-Carlton, Guangzhou (2007) and The Ritz-Carlton Shanghai, Pudong (2009,) most recently recognized as the "World's Best Hotel" by the readers of Conde Nast Traveler. The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C., of Chevy Chase, Maryland, currently operates 77 hotels in the Americas, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and the Caribbean. The Ritz-Carlton is the only service company to have twice earned the prestigious Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, which recognizes outstanding customer service.
