How would you sum up the history of the Sofitel Paris Baltimore, and what makes it such an atypical establishment on the Paris hotel scene?
Franck Poncey - The Sofitel Paris-Baltimore is first and foremost a building with a real history, which we remind all our guests of. It was built in 1892 by the architect Paul Lorin, in the tradition of Haussmann-style buildings, with Gustave Eiffel's workshops working on the ironwork and balconies. The building was converted into a hotel in 1920, and soon welcomed business travellers. Lord Baltimore was the first, and the hotel was named after this businessman who travelled between Paris, New York and London.
What about recent history, since the arrival of the current owner?
Franck Poncey - In 2008, our current owner Pierre Esnée bought the hotel, which became the Sofitel Paris Baltimore at the end of 2017, the warm, confidential, intimate place it still is today, because the hotel has known how to pass through the ages and evolve, without ever losing the richness of its heritage.
What does this mean for business customers?
Franck Poncey - We have exceptional venues, where you can hold a meeting for five, six or eight people on the top floor, in lounges with a view of the Eiffel Tower, for a truly magical moment. There are rooms that can accommodate groups of twelve to twenty people in daylight, and which are completely modular (see box). We work hard on this modular aspect, to adapt to multiple formats and respond to all types of requests. And the Sofitel Baltimore is a hotel where you feel good, where you like to be without really being seen.
You can also take advantage of this location in the 16e arrondissement, and the surrounding business clientele...
Franck Poncey - Yes, all our areas can be made private, including the restaurant, and are therefore available to the surrounding business clientele. There are many law firms, chartered accountants, business centres, football professionals... And since we completely transformed our restaurant with Paris Society Consulting, we can work on a wide variety of formulas. We're getting more and more requests for privatisations, particularly for Lordy's Paris Club or the bar. And the end-of-year festivities are still seeing demand increase, of course.
How has demand for MICE changed in recent years?
Franck Poncey - In the aftermath of the health crisis, many people thought that professionals would meet less, with teleworking, videoconferencing, etc. However, over the last two years, the MICE segment has picked up very strongly, as far as we are concerned. Our MICE business has increased by 65% compared with 2023. We have seen spectacular growth in MICE, particularly in 2025, with seminars from all over the world. This is something quite new for us.
What is the biggest format of event you host? The most common?
Franck Poncey - The largest format generally consists of presentations attended by 90 people in the large seminar room, in theatre format. But the most common format is between 25 and 40 people.
And what do business customers represent overall for the Sofitel Baltimore?
Franck Poncey - Business customers now represent between 35 and 40%. Ten years ago, this figure was 60%. This has completely reversed, despite the increase in MICE demand. But the share of residential seminars is limited. The MICE segment now represents 12%: for a 103-room hotel with four areas, that's still very good!
The strength of the Accor group and its loyalty programme should also play an important role for Sofitel Baltimore...
Franck Poncey - Yes, that's definitely an advantage. We're catching up with the American chains, particularly in terms of MICE clientele. It should also be noted that the Sofitel Paris Baltimore has been singled out as one of the 15 Sofitel and MGallery establishments with the highest growth in MICE sales worldwide among members of the Accor group's loyalty programme in 2025. So we're really enjoying a record period from every point of view, and in terms of MICE, it's been particularly intense, with the highest MICE sales ever recorded here.
What is the outlook for 2026?
Franck Poncey - We're going to try to repeat our good figures for 2025. Our order book for 2026 is good in terms of planning recurrent seminars. Our regular customers have already put in options, which is very good. We always talk about the sluggishness of businesses, but I think we should also highlight everything that's working well in France. There are still a number of companies that are doing well, and at the end of the year it's always important to get your staff together in a warm, intimate setting like this.
