[Greatest Hits] Why Hospitality Needs Human Connection: Insights from Anne-Sophie Baret

Speaker A: Welcome to Getting to Aha. Uh-huh. The podcast that delves into the power of Aha moments, also known as insights, and how they shape our lives. Insights not only help us to navigate the present, but also lay the groundwork for the future by eliminating the patterns and behaviors that guide our decisions. In every episode, host Darshan Mehta chats to a new guest, delving into the AHA moments that impacted their personal journey and those that drove success in their professional life. After all, conversations are the path to insights.

Speaker B: I'd like to welcome Anne Sophie Beret, who has over 15 years of experience in hospitality marketing. She is a results driven leader specializing in crafting and executing impactful marketing strategies across B2C and B2B channels. Her career has been defined by a passion for orchestrating 360 marketing activations, driving product innovation and building iconic brands that resonate with global audiences. As the head of product marketing and trade marketing at Club Med, she leads a high impact initiatives that blend strategic vision with operational excellence. From spearheading the launch of innovative offerings like Wellness Fusion by Club Med to directing large scale resort projects such as Club Med, Miche and Quebec, she has consistently delivered projects that enhance guest satisfaction, strengthen brand positioning and drive revenue growth. At the heart of it all, she believes hospitality is about creating moments that matter, whether for guests, teams or partners.

Speaker C: Welcome.

Speaker A: Thank you.

Speaker D: It's your pleasure.

Speaker B: Tell us about the Aha, uh, moments that have brought you to where you are now as the head of product marketing and trademarking ClubNet.

Speaker D: Sure. Well, I think travel always been part of my DNA. My parents gave me the travel bug from early on. My mom was working for Air France, so really early we had the opportunity to travel in very different countries. I was in touch with really different culture and that just opened my word to the world of travel. So after when I start studying and I had my very first experience in hospitality in Spain for the all inclusive resorts, I knew from that moment I wanted to work in the hospitality industry because I realized it was not only about service industry, but it was about experience. And what was so interesting is that even if I was coming from a marketing background, I was able to really be in touch with different fascinated people from the cuisine, from the spa, the well being. So you are in touch with so many different type of people and I think that was really creating in me, you know, the passion for hospitality. So after that I continued to travel. I had beautiful experience in Cambodia, opening resort there. Lived also in Morocco for a, uh, family owned palace. And then after I continue in Paris and now Miami for Club Med.

Speaker B: I think traveling is a great educator. And I think the fact that you had the opportunity to travel, I'm sure you've seen a lot the culture way to communicate, and you learn a lot about human nature completely.

Speaker D: And I think that's one of the most beautiful gifts our, uh, parents did for my sister and I was opening our world very early on and to almost like, confront us to different cultures. So I think as a child, it open your mind, it gives you so much more tolerance and understanding about other cultures. So for me, I think one of my key moment, I think I was like 13, 14, and we traveled to Morocco for the first time, and I made friends there. I think in one week, I get so attached to them. And they were coming from Morocco from different culture. And when I left Darshan, I was like, devastating. So that moment for me was just a moment where I realized travel not only open your mind, but also open your heart. And after that. And I have been able to work in Morocco after on. But it just makes me realize the importance of traveling and opening our hearts to different culture and connect on a deeper level. So that's why I feel hospitality is a bridge, connect people and to connect soul together. So this is our role to create beautiful experience for people to connect and to meet.

Speaker B: So you talked about experiences, which I think is very much true. Um, I'm curious, what initial experience stands out in your mind that really crystallized for you? Wow. It's all about the experience more than anything.

Speaker D: I think in terms of experience overall, there is several dimensions, and I believe it's different for anyone and depend where you are in your life. So travel will mean maybe reconnecting first with yourself. So that's why we can see lately there is really an increase in solo travelers. So but the solo travelers today, they don't want to be by themselves. Now we are talking about solo social travelers. They want to live by themselves to travel, but they want to meet other people. So that's why today, even if we feel that we are in a little bit of a disconnected world, because we are all behind our screen. But more than ever, I believe we are in a shift in the humankind where we want to connect again. And travel is a great way, uh, to reconnect with others, and so ultimately to reconnect with ourselves. So I think that's one part. I think also the second, like, major trend that we are seeing in the hospitality industry is the need to reconnect with, uh, nature and to leave the local Culture, you know, so it's not only about escaping your daily life and just sitting on the beach, maybe for some people, but now we really see travelers are seeking for that understanding of the local culture, of the authenticity of the moment and the authenticity of the people, you know. So this is where I feel like there is really reconnecting with yourself, with others, and nature also, uh, is truly important in that I think you're right.

Speaker B: People are no longer buying products or looking for experiences and experiences that I think sounds like it's also tied to a bigger purpose that people are looking for in life. Is that correct?

Speaker D: Of course. We are living in a world which is, uh, very divided at the moment. But at the same time, I'm very optimistic in the fact that we are all seeking the same thing. I really observed through my experience in hospitality, in corporate world, in the travel, we are all thinking the same thing. We all want to be seen, we all want to be heard. We all want to connect on a deeper level. So I think traveling a different meaning for anyone. But I think, you know, your. Your purpose, it will help you also to. To open your mind and to have those aha moments and coming back home maybe differently. So that's why, you know, even at, uh, Clement, what we propose is we open our guests to more experience so they can try a new activity that maybe in their daily lives they will have never dared to try. So, for instance, yoga. We're trying to bring yoga to more people through our resort. And I'm so happy to see that people are maybe not trying in their daily life, and they do it once at Clement, and they come back home and they continue the practice. I think the purpose of travel will be very unique for anybody. But more than that, it's finding the meaning and your intention when traveling.

Speaker B: I think it's very interesting. I'm curious, what types of activities are you seeing people more gravitating towards now than you saw before?

Speaker D: Great question. Actually, Yoga, I mean, 10 years ago, it was not that popular and where we were maybe having like one or two result, proposing yoga experience. So we really can see the rise of wellness and the need of people to have a more a, uh, gentle activity and. And ultimately yoga will help you to find that mindful moment and reconnect with yourself. So we can see yoga is one of them. Also, pickleball in North America is really popular. We have tennis padel, also extremely popular. We have created, like, now we have padel court, uh, in some of our resorts, we have pickleball courts. So yeah, definitely. I will say that's some of the most popular. And at Club Meg, which is one of the activities that we propose is a circus. So we have you know like flying trapeze. I believe it's a great activity to go out from your comfort zone and many adults love these activities and actually many companies are coming to do team building around trust and they are doing the flying trophies.

Speaker B: Oh, very interesting. So what shifts are you seeing now? Because you said now we live in a very contentious, challenging environment right now around the world where things there's uncertainty, a little bit of chaos. What shifts are you seeing already now that you anticipate to become even bigger things a ah, year from now?

Speaker D: I think uh, as we mentioned, you know we are living in a much more like isolated world and I think in the coming year with the rise of so first the digital and now the AI era that we are in and especially for the new generation, for the Gen Z that are growing up with all the digital tools, we can see that in their human behavior they are becoming a little bit less social than the previous generation. Maybe they are struggling to connect with OG as a previous where we didn't have the choice to go talk to each other if we wanted an interaction and now everything is behind the phone. But we are social animal so we need that human connection. So I really believe in the coming year and we can see also in the figures that travel is about the social connection. So that's why we can see and we observe that there is a rise of uh, a theme vacation. So you're going to have women retreats, men retreat or dad retreat. So according to gather people around one theme or uh, one common purpose, people will travel around that to connect on a deeper level and also use you know, the travel as a way to heal on a deeper level. So I really believe this is where we are going and actually when we see the figure, I think it's a uh, American Express who've done a study which is about 75% now of Traveler are seeking wellness as a key purpose of their uh, vacation. So definitely we know people are looking not only to escape, you know their daily life, they are really looking for purpose, for connection and coming back different at home.

Speaker B: So Club Med has been around for how many years now?

Speaker D: 75 years.

Speaker B: Wow, that's a long time. And that's. So what do you think his secret or what are the three factors that have contribute to the longevity of Club Med being around for 75 years?

Speaker D: Actually club Med has been founded right after The Second World War, with idea of liberation, of freedom. So Clement is actually the inventor of the all inclusive concept. I don't know if you knew that, but it's the pioneer and they have invented this idea. The founder of being all together, not having any sign of social recognition. So when you're in Clement, there is no credit card. Everything is included. That's why that was question of practicity, of course, but also of freedom. We are all the same. We just have our swimsuit and it's freedom, there is activity. So really the purpose of Clement from the beginning was about freedom, about being yourself and about connection. So I feel that's why after 75 years, Club Med is still very popular and we continue to expand our portfolio because we are really able to bring people together through our activities. For instance, we not only have tennis court. We have tennis court, but we have an instructor that will create classes and that will create connection with the guests. So when you are Clement, you are, you know, meeting people during the tennis and after you can have lunch with them. Um, we have like communal table, so you can go at a table and people know, okay, I don't know you, but I can sit at the same table and we're going to meet. So that's really a unique concept. We have also the go. So this is how we call our employees. It's called gentil organization. So, uh, you know, around the idea of kindness and I think more than ever we see other hospitality group coming back to that notion of kindness. But it was part of the DNA from the beginning. And I truly believe this is what the world needs today, kindness. And this is what one of the core value of Club Med is. Being kind with our employee, kind, uh, of course with the guest, you know, but create this sense of connection. So I feel that's why we have like Club Med. We have Club Med fans, Club Med clients, Some of them, they only travel to Club Med. It's pretty, pretty impressive. And because they just feel that there is a sense of connection, that maybe in a regular hotel, which can be more cold, here we are there to be together and actually the staff can actually eat with the guest. So we know, like, it's breaking the rule of most of upscale hotel, but which is amazing because it's like breaking the regular rules and say, okay, it's. We are all together to live and experience a vacation. And I truly believe that's why people come back.

Speaker B: What's going to be really the big trends a year from now in travel that you're Seeing coming up on the horizon.

Speaker D: I mean there'll be several trends that we are seeing emerging. One of them is everything around water. So the water therapy has been increasing uh, in the couple of years. So for instance we see the rise of cold plunging cold therapy which has been popular thanks to Wim Hof. And we can see that now hotel are trying to propose you know these type of experiences to the guests. Uh so definitely all around, you know, thermal spa, you know around the connection with the ocean there is different experience that you can have also you know with uh, water therapy, healer, uh, you know that helps you uh, you know reconnect when you're wearing the warmth through the water. So definitely water therapy is becoming one of the biggest trends that we, we observe. Another trend that I find very interesting is astronomy and astrology. We can see that there is of course like a uh, big interest and it's intriguing uh, everybody knowing more about the stars. So we observe in North America you have um, the Dark sky association which is um, detecting the best sky in the world so you can observe the star at night. So definitely the astro tourism uh, is increasing. So for instance at Clement we, we have one of our resorts in Clement, Quebec. Um and during summer there is one of the most beautiful stars in, in Quebec. There is even a week where in August generally where there is a lot of shooting stars. So it's absolutely fabulous. So we brought a uh, planetarium, you know on top of that to educate people around, you know, astronomy with professionals that is coming and explaining. We have telescopes so we are trying to create animation around that. But definitely we see a big, big interest, you know, in knowing more about uh, astronomer.

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Speaker B: Interesting. So how do you and your team keep up with these emerging trends? And how do you then know this one's going to work or not going to work? And how do you glean the insights?

Speaker D: I think it's about reading a lot of at the same time. Uh, what are the new client behavior and new client expectations. So Mia, I'm really passionated about understanding our era and Understanding how we evolve and what do we need. So first it's about observing the client's expectation and the new traveler's trend. So of course we are reading a lot of articles understanding that a combination of that is knowing who we are so clement our DNA, what do we propose and how we can create new experience for the guests. So for instance, when I read about, you know, the astro tourism, you know, brainstorming with my team and I'm like, okay, what can we do? Where can we do it? You know, because creating an experiences, it's about understanding the client, understanding when and where is the most appropriate experience and finding sometimes the right partner. We have been able to, you know, to brainstorm and to propose, you know, diverse experiences around for instance astronomy in Quebec, Charlevoix. But I think it's really both understanding the clients, reading about it and also intuition. You know, you never know if an experience will work or no. But I think you know, when you are touching, you know, a good concept or a good experience and usually it's much appreciated by the guest in resorts.

Speaker B: Yeah, I think in your situation you can see the results right away, right. If they really enjoyed or not. How many properties does ClubNet have around the world?

Speaker D: Uh, we have uh, 70 properties around the world. And the particularity of club we have like beach resort but we have mountain resort. And I don't know if much people know that, but we actually propose all inclusive ski experience. So we have around like 20 resorts around the world which is located uh, on the mountain, which is a fabulous experience in ski and ski.

Speaker B: So I'm curious, what was the smallest change you thought you were doing but in the end it ended up being a real game changer for you guys at Club Med?

Speaker D: Well, the smallest change, it's a small change, it's just maybe a uh, change in the mindset. We thought for a long time, you know, our clients are looking for big entertainment in the evening. For instance, having you know, a big LED screen with shows and lights and everything. And especially after Covid, you know, we shift this mindset and we realize it's really about offering to the guests authenticity instead of having like a big show with light and ah, music. I've been personally inspired. Like I've been in Greece with my friend and one night we were in that beautiful like places where they were celebrating the sunset. And right now it's really trendy but you see the sunset and then the drums are coming and everybody, you know, there is this sense of community, of being together and celebrating nature And I find, wow, that's such an amazing idea and we should do that at Club Med. But of course that was kind of a shift in terms of mindset. We did it for our first resort, Club Med Miches, which was uh, our first exclusive, uh, collection resort, more on the luxury side. And so we created a beautiful sunset ritual which is just some nice Moroccan carpets, few lights, some drums, live music, and just watching all together at the same time, the sunset and creating like a ritual at this moment. And today it became one of the most popular events and it has been deployed in most of our resort worldwide. That moment is just the simplicity, but the authenticity of the moment. We don't need so much fluff, we just need to reconnect. And it's also shifting the mindset of the client being just passive and watching. But now he's more in an experiential handshake. He's part of the experience.

Speaker B: You know, you mentioned the word connect quite a bit and I think that's one of the core elements of your success at uh, Club Med. I'm uh, curious what other two words you think really also are part of the key success for Club Med. One is connecting. What are the other two?

Speaker D: I will say diversity and inclusivity. Diversity. Because when you are at Club Med you are able to try so many activities, you know, and there is different type of all inclusive resorts and most of them it's food and drinks which is included. But in Club Med it's really, you have in average 20 sports included. But you can also, you have the freedom and the choice to just relax and sit back or you can be active all day. Also we have an amazing program for the kids. So if you want to uh, share moment with your kids and reconnect, you can do that. Also if you want your kids to socialize and to meet other kids around the world, you can do that. So it's really the diversity and the balance we offer during one stay. There is not two climate stays that look like each other. Your stay will be different from mine, but still we're going to be at the same resort. The freedom that we offering in the diversity of the program is pretty fantastic. And the second world will be inclusivity. Clement always been about multiculturalism. And when we go in a destination, we really embrace the culture. We don't have like cookie cutter hotel. We try to understand when we arrive, respect the culture and really try to share it with our guests so they feel they are traveling and not feeling that they are in a cookie cutter area. So it's really, I think, about embracing the destination and embracing the culture we are implemented here.

Speaker B: Have there been any key aha moments that have really reshaped the way you think about marketing, customer experience or even product innovation?

Speaker D: Yeah, I think one of the um, aha moment was I was actually not at Club Med. It was during 2020, still deep in the pandemic. And back at that time I had to do a quarantine in Turkey. So I was in Turkey. I was one of our Club Med, and I met this little Thai lady which was working for the spa. And we start talking about the word and having a really heartfelt conversation on um, just how the word is doing and how people need to heal. And she shared with me, she's like, I always was looking for someone working at Club Med to share that we can do so much more for the guest through Clement. Helping very humbly, but helping the world to feel better, to be a little bit kinder. So for me, she plant a seed in my head. And six months later I proposed to my leadership to have holistic wellness program for our guests. And this is when Wellness Fusion by Club Med was born. And with the true intention behind to really help our guests to feel better through our activities, through having more yoga, introducing meditation with Sun Boys for me was really a first step. I'm so grateful that my leadership supporting me that ID that now has been around since three years. And we keep having the program evolving and touching our guests and hopefully some of them feel better when they're coming back home.

Speaker B: Interesting. Now, does the wellness also include longevity or is that a different area for you guys?

Speaker D: Very good question. Actually, this summer, uh, we organize a wellness festival in, in uh, Quebec, in our resort in Quebec. And we receive a doctor in longevity. So she will have conferences with our guests, nutrition tips also about, uh, longevity. But definitely we see it coming. And this year for the first time, we will have experts to share their knowledge with our guests.

Speaker B: Yeah, I'm sensing a lot of people are now focusing on healthspan, not just lifespan.

Speaker D: It's a big shift and one of the big trends contributing to that is a vegan, of course, uh, vegan diet. So for that we partner with uh, with an American chef called, uh, Chef Chloe, which is located in New York and she's a vegan chef and she came to train all of our chef de cuisine in North America were vegan method. So now we are able to propose, um, you know, vegan dishes on all of our restaurants, you know, from breakfast to dinner. So that's part of it. And a very healthy nutrition coming along with all the activity we propose. But definitely uh, living better, feeling better, mentally and physically. It's not becoming niche anymore.

Speaker B: But do you appeal to all age groups or are there certain age groups that clubnet really caters to more than others?

Speaker D: No, really, clement is from 0 to 99. We are open to different targets because we have at the same time you know, adults. We have some adults, resort adults area. So more suitable for couple or solo travelers. And we have, you know, more family resorts but no specific like age group. It's to everyone and this is a beauty of it because at night at Club Med also there is a festive ambiance, you know, in most of our resort. And you can see it's beautiful. You know, it's a safe environment and people party. There is a kids, the adults, the elderly. And it's just beautiful to see people all around the world connected, also around dance, you know, in beautiful settings, you know, by the water. So it's really nice, it's inclusive for everyone.

Speaker B: Nice. So what excites you about the future travel experiences? Club Med, whatever.

Speaker D: So many things. Darshan excited me about the future in host pick three. I think, I really think we can do so much. First, I believe wellness will remain in the coming year. Key, you know, more wellness, more self care and self awareness to our guests. And the second one I will say is creating community. You know, the sense of community is back more than ever. Um, and people has this need to, to feel that they are belonging to something. So I believe hospitality is a bridge to that and to gather people. So our role is really to create this sense of community that you know, sustain even after your travel.

Speaker B: So what do you do to facilitate that after people have come to Club Med? Is there something you do to foster that community or people are doing it on their own?

Speaker D: Well, we create the connection, you know, through the sports, you know, people are meeting through our different experience during lunch, during the parties, during all moments. You know, at Clement it's really like open minded clients that want to meet with each other or not. That's why you have the freedom. But now after we just let people uh, you know, continue uh, the friendship or relationship they want to continue after. But I can tell you we have Facebook group of Club Meds clients and they are fans. So they know sometimes we release the news about new resorts and right away like it's played on the group. Did you know that Punta Cana is going under renovation Render And I'm like already, like I sent the news like yesterday. So really we can see that, that people are coming back to Club Med for that because we, there is a sense of community. That was the original idea of the founder. And now, um, more than ever this is what really people need.

Speaker B: And what was the third thing asked you about community? And you were going to mention a third?

Speaker D: I think also I'm in term of mostly on the marketing part. I'm, I'm interested to see where AI is going to bring us. I'm um, deeply optimistic. So I feel like AI is really here to help us, freeing our time doing repetitive tasks so that way we can be more creative also and shifting from, you know, just a story storyteller mindset to really experienced designer. So I really would like to focus more on that, you know, to have more time to create great experience for the guest, to connect, to feel better and to create amazing memories. So when they come back home, they feel maybe a little bit different or they learn something about themselves or uh, through the connections they will have done.

Speaker B: So how are you experimenting or how have you already implemented AI into what you're doing?

Speaker D: Well, in terms of marketing, of course, it's a big help today and I think where we are crafting our messaging, you know, of course through copywriting or through the visuals that we are using, we are relying on with AI, But I believe it's the beginning stage and uh, we know in the coming year, you know, for, especially for marketing, you know, it will become more and more like a big help and help us saving time.

Speaker B: I think we're all in kind of that position to everyone's kind of learning and playing with it and seeing where it takes you. But it definitely does in many cases, I think, uh, is a good start to get you going in many areas. So now that you've traveled and uh, been to many places around the world and been at Club Med, what advice or tips would you give a, uh, younger Aunt Sophie? Uh, based on what you know now with your knowledge and experience?

Speaker D: I would say don't sweat the small stuff, because it's all small stuff. The thing I learned through the past, because life can be so challenging in so many ways and, and I feel like just being able to take a step back on life in general. The different challenges, the different stress that we can have. So really don't sweat the small stuff. It's uh, a great book by the way, really being able to navigate life really more, more smoothly. But of course I think uh, it's easy to Say now that I have more experience, but 15 years ago when I started my career, you know, and so that's why I'm like, just go with the flow and, yeah, do your job well. Learn. Be curious about the world around you. Be curious about other people. Because I think this is, uh, where our true, uh, wealth is coming from, is from the connection with others and learn from them.

Speaker B: Nice. So if you could have lunch or dinner with anyone in hospitality, uh, who would it be and why?

Speaker D: Ah, in hospitality, I think will be the founder, actually, of Clement, Gerard Blitz, which was, uh, actually a yogi. I love to do yoga on a weekly basis. And I think he was such an interesting character as a founder of Clement, and, yeah, truly passionate. It helped, you know, having the yoga growing into Europe also. He was very much part of it. And, yeah, just a visionary person that 75 years ago, after. We are still there, the company is growing, the vision is alive more than ever and is contemporary still.

Speaker B: So I'm curious, what led him from. What was the Aha moment, if, you know, that led him from yoga to Club Med?

Speaker D: I don't know that, but I just know that the initial idea was coming about, like, the sense of freedom back then in 1950, you know, they just went through such a hard time. I believe the notion of freedom and being all together and being, you know, in the joy and in a light. In a light and a happy way, I think that's a beautiful vision. And that remains.

Speaker B: Yeah, I mean, obviously it was a vision that's lasted out the test of time for many years now, so that's good. Well, thank you very much. Uh, Sophie, it was a pleasure talking to you and learning about your Aha moments as well as Club Med, and I appreciate you being a guest on Getting to Aha.

Speaker D: Thank you, Darshan. Thank you for having me.

Speaker C: Getting to Aha, uh was brought to you by I Research. To find out more about us, head to iResearch.com and make sure to search for Getting to Aha. Uh in Apple podcasts, Spotify and anywhere else podcasts are found. And don't forget to click follow to ensure you don't miss any future episodes. Thank you for listening,

Speaker B: Sam.