Taking 10 with...Aldina Duarte Ramos

Sunday 4th February 2018

By Michelle Hammond

Q1 - How did your childhood influence your work ethic and attitude towards business?

I was born in Portugal and came to France when I was 2 years old.  My education was very strict. My parents are an example of perseverance for me. They never gave up on any thing and they always had hope for a better life. They are immigrant heroes who escaped dictatorship back in the 70’s,  lived in a shanty town in a country they couldn't understand the language and managed to find a job, raise their kids and give them the right education. I am so lucky and grateful my Parents came to France, this country gave me so many opportunities to grow, learn, study, create, love and share.

Q2 - What do you believe the principles of a successful business are today?

Quality is the best idea for any business.

Q3 - Looking back, what was your best business decision?

Back when I was working in the fashion industry, I needed to open the U.S market and needed to find the right distributor and broker. I did. I can still remember the feeling of every step of the projects. Doubts, fear, anxiety, excitement!

Q4 - Who has influenced you the most through your career?

Jean Pierre Ferchaud, Hotel General Manager when I was at Hotel Le Bristol Paris. He was a model of discipline and management. He was fair. We all felt strong, empowered, valued. He encouraged all of us to take initiatives. His model was clearly to lead by example and he was deeply respected for that. Mr Ferchaud is still an aspiring leader to me.

Q5 - What was your most difficult / worst business decision? 

To move from the fashion to the hotel industry. Nobody was supporting the career move around me, telling me it was too risky to go from fashion to hotels. Well... at the end, I did not care for any of the comments that were pulling me back and I did it. I jumped. It was difficult because I absolutely loved my job and I did not know what I was going to step into.

Q6 - What would you say was the single most advantageous character trait for success?

You absolutely need to be honest.

Q7 - What happens when you’re stressed or overwhelmed?

I want to go faster…. 

Q8 - How do you invest in your own wellbeing. How do you look after yourself?

I sleep deeply, eat healthy meals and exercise 10 minutes a day. I have a short yoga morning ritual that prepares me for the day.

Q9 - If you could change one thing about the spa and wellness industry what would it be and why?

Create a training academy for Wellness Directors and stop limiting this business to spa & beauty. It is spicing up now, we are getting there.

Q10 - Finally, What’s your favourite quote or the best advice you’ve ever been given?

My favourite quotes are 'What does not kill you makes you stronger' and 'nothing is impossible'. 

The best advice I have been given was when I was an intern in the United States… a while back.: "Do not let anybody say you can not do the job;  if you never tried it before, nobody knows " . 

 

FLASH FACTS - FOR FUN SECTION 

1. What’s your favourite book? Une vie, Guy de Maupassant. The story of a woman. She is strong, she is unlucky, her life is a succession of obstacles but she stands and searched the light. But I also like James Ellroy thrillers.
2. What’s your favourite film of all time? That’s a difficult question. Today I feel like saying Gone With The Wind.
3. If you could have dinner with anyone, past or present, who would it be and why? I always enjoy dinner with my husband and my 8 year old daughter. It is a lot of fun.
4. You get taken to your favourite place to be, where are you taken? To the moon… 
5. Your perfect dinner is? A family dinner
6. Your go to drink is? Red wine
7. Your favourite sweet treat is? Dark chocolate of course ;-)
8. What’s your favourite essential oil / scent? Lavender
9. You go for a treatment - what do you have and why? I love a foot massage
10. What’s your favourite flower? Peony flower. They are soft like silk.  
11. You want to sleep deeply, what do you do? I can sleep everywhere… I only need to close my eyes. 
12. You want to energise fast, what do you do? I juice! 
13. The theme tune to your life is? Nothing is impossible!
14. What makes you laugh to your belly? Oh my god, I laugh so often. I react very well to stupid jokes ....And my husband also makes me laugh.
15. What’s your favourite season? Spring
16. What’s your favourite colour? Indigo blue
17. Your favourite time of day is? The second before I sleep. I know I am going to rest deeply and I let everything go.
18. If you could have been anyone or anything else, what / who would you be? I like being me. I have my father’s eyes, my mother’s nose, my grand mothers talent for singing, my father’s curly hair, my mother’s smile and I am me ;-)
19. What’s your current TV guilty secret? I'm actually proud of it - even if it is an old series - but I absolutely love Moonlighting.
20. Magic dust - you can learn one new skill instantly, what is it? Play piano or guitar, or both!

Aldina supervises the AccorHotels Luxury & Upscale Brands portfolio for wellness worldwide [Sofitel, Pullman, Swissôtel], 330 properties. Today, Aldina shares her vision of a guest oriented wellness experience focused around 4 pillars adapted to the Hospitality industry: SLEEP, FOOD, SPORT &SPA. This strategy is now being implemented throughout the network. Aldina is also President of French Spa Association and former President of France Wellness Tourism Commission. Aldina graduated from La Sorbonne Paris IV, and Paris X Nanterre in Political Science.

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Instagram: @aldina_duarte_ramos 

Twitter : @aduarteramos