Interview with Alastair Thomann, CEO of Pentahotels

With the opening of Pentahotels Paris CDG in June, is your brand aiming to revitalise the airport hotel sector?

Alastair Thomann - Next to airports, travellers often find products that are old and boring. Operators, because these establishments are doing very well and, what's more, demand continues to grow, don't feel the need to renovate or innovate. Pentahotels has a clear vision of this environment and is breaking the mould by emphasising style and originality! We have created a very design concept, with a very 'living room' atmosphere. This young, unconventional approach takes the airport hotel experience to another level.

After your hotels in Brussels-National and Paris CDG, do you have any other openings in the pipeline near major international hubs?

Alastair Thomann - Absolutely, we're keeping an eye out for opportunities to add new airport hotels to our offering. We really appreciate this type of location and have the experience to bring something different, something special, to airport areas. These are very buoyant commercial environments for Pentahotels and we therefore maintain very good relations with the major airlines.

How do you meet the particular expectations of business travellers, who are always between planes?

Alastair Thomann - These customers, often very frequent travellers, are demanding, and our staff are confronted every day with requests that they would not have in a city-centre hotel. This is why they are particularly well prepared to respond to their often unusual requests. Above all, however, our guests are looking for the basics: WiFi, a space to work, a comfortable bed and a good shower, all of which we offer with a level of quality that travellers might expect to find in a five-star hotel. The experience also includes a fully equipped fitness area - essential for our customers - decorated in Pentahotels style.

Your lobby is also a distinctive feature of your lifestyle concept...

Alastair Thomann - Indeed, our customers love our lobbies, their 'neighbourhood meeting place' style, which we call pentalounge and where we offer quality drinks and friendly food, all served by young and enthusiastic staff. Because arrival and departure times can vary greatly depending on the traveller, this space is frequented at all hours of the day and night, including a 24/7 pizza service. The pentalounge makes you feel at home, with its large, cosy sofas, pool tables, pinball machines, vintage video games, PlayStation 4s, Macs, free WIFI and large screens showing SKY Sports.

Your hotel at Paris CDG is also a meeting venue. How do you translate your lifestyle focus into this area?

Alastair Thomann - Our hotel welcomes both traditional seminars, as its location is very convenient for bringing together international participants, and business travellers who come here to hold business meetings with their clients or colleagues between two flights. It is for them that we have launched a new meeting experience with smaller, inspiring rooms that we call ThinkTank. We've also created private lounges - probably the coolest around Roissy - where crews can gather for their pre-departure briefings.

reach 80 establishments by 2020

What are your development prospects?

Alastair Thomann - We have just strengthened our organisation for this purpose, with offices in Europe, Asia and North America. Our goal is to reach 80 establishments by 2020 (compared with 27 today), focusing on the heart of major cities - London, Barcelona, Rome, Bangkok, New York, Los Angeles, Miami - or the acquisition of hotel portfolios in the three regions mentioned above.