Director Business Development – Corporate Finance & Legal – Global Sales Luxury & Lifestyle (M/F/X)

Accor is a world leader in the Luxury and Lifestyle hospitality, with more than 550 hotels in this segment and a large pipeline of exciting openings to come. Accor is moving forward with the creation of two standalone divisions with clearly identified expertise, ambitions, and objectives, which will leverage on our strengths in order to improve our portfolio of unique and diverse brands, our leadership across most markets and our unrivalled development momentum in new territories.

These two divisions are

- The “Premium, Midscale & Economy” division , to be internally named the “Power Brands” division. This entity includes the brands from the Group’s Premium, Midscale and Economy segments. It is structured around four regions, based in Paris, Sao Paulo, Singapore, and Shanghai.
- The “Luxury & Lifestyle” division , bringing together the Group’s luxury brands, as well as the lifestyle platform, Ennismore. This division, managed by brand, is structured around four “Maison”: Orient Express (based in Paris); Raffles & Fairmont (based in New York); Sofitel, MGallery & Emblems (based in Paris) and Ennismore (based in London).

The Global Sales Luxury & Lifestyle team, has a critical cross-functional role in the Luxury & Lifestyle division, to support the brands, strengthen Accor’s positioning on this market and boost high margin revenue to the Luxury & Lifestyle hotels.

Job Purpose

This position is responsible for driving revenue and market share growth for Accor’s Luxury & Lifestyle brands within the highly lucrative sectors of Global Corporate Finance (including Private Banking, Wealth Management, Hedge Funds, Family Offices, Private Equity), Top-Tier Law Firms and Luxury/Boutique MICE Agencies, by:

- Acting as a pure sales "hunter" focused on acquiring new high-margin business (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Corporate Groups and Corporate Transient Business) primarily out of the UK and European markets.
- Leveraging your established, active network of pre-existing C-Level and event-planner contacts within London’s financial and legal hubs to proactively open doors.
- Applying a consultative, 360° strategic approach to position Accor’s luxury portfolio as the ultimate hospitality partner for elite corporate retreats, high-end partner meetings, and prestigious financial roadshows.
- Working closely with our hotels (DOSM, Revenue, Brands) and global network to deliver custom solutions and a flawless experience for your clients.
- Generating agreed-upon revenue and room nights as outlined in the annual sales goals.

Major ones

- Minimum of 5 years of experience in global or property luxury sales (hospitality or high-end travel).
- A strong, active network of contacts within London’s Private Banking, Finance, and elite Law Firms.
- Deep knowledge of the Meetings & Incentives (MICE) business , especially high-end events, corporate groups and Corporate Transient Business.
- Proven "Hunter" sales mentality with a track record of finding and winning new business independently.
- Strong negotiation skills for handling complex, high-value corporate contracts and luxury deals.
- Good understanding of hotel revenue management and distribution channels.

Others

- Ability to make complex sales processes simple and smooth for the client.
- Great leadership skills to coordinate and work well with different hotel teams (General Managers, Revenue, Brands).
- Perfect English (written and spoken) with excellent presentation and storytelling skills.
- Strong organizational and project management skills to manage multiple client events at once.
- Proficient with CRM tools (Salesforce/Anais is a plus) and Microsoft Office (Excel, PowerPoint, Word).

Personal qualities

- Client-minded
- Luxe mindset
- Sales-oriented personality
- Proactive
- High energy level
- Influencer & convincer
- High achiever
- Fast learner

- Curiosity
- Flexibility
- Opportunistic
- Enthusiastic

Educational Background: Bachelor’s degree or equivalent.

Responsibilities

Proactively hunt and acquire new key accounts within Private Banking, Wealth Management, Hedge Funds, Magic Circle law firms, and boutique MICE agencies to increase Accor’s market share.; Leverage your pre-existing London-based network to build strong, personal relationships with key decisionmakers and C-level executives.; Identify, qualify, and convert new business opportunities, specifically high-margin corporate groups, partner retreats, financial roadshows and corporate transient business.; Promote all Luxury & Lifestyle hotels (Raffles, Orient Express, Fairmont, Sofitel, Ennismore) by showing deep knowledge of our brands and a true "Luxe Mindset."; Actively animate and develop your network to ensure Accor is always preferred for their high-end corporate events.; Respond quickly and professionally to incoming client inquiries, turning leads into high-yield bookings.; Define and implement a clear 360° sales strategy for your account portfolio to increase Accor's presence and revenue at both global and regional levels.; Lead complex commercial and contract negotiations, securing premium deals and protecting hotel margins.; Coordinate closely with internal teams, including Hotel DOSM, Revenue Managers, and Brand Directors, to ensure a flawless experience for your clients.; Align your sales actions with the Global Sales Luxury & Lifestyle strategy and design specific campaigns to support hotels.; Maintain 100% accurate reporting and database management in the CRM (Anais/Salesforce) to track production, trends, and account health.; Based on forecasts and objectives, the Director Business Development is responsible for monitoring the economic performance of their accounts and taking proactive actions necessary to reach and exceed these revenue and room night goals.

Requirements

Sales Skills; Analytical skills; Common sense and autonomy; Communication and presentation skills