Surprises at The Savoy: Franck Arnold on What He Didn't Expect Artwork

Over Here, Over There: International Politics & Culture Podcast

Over Here, Over There: Your essential guide to US-EU politics, international relations, and cross-cultural dialogue. Join Dan Harris (BBC commentator) and Claudia Koestler (Süddeutsche Zeitung Senior Editor) for expert analysis on democracy, transatlantic relations, and global affairs.

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Over Here, Over There: International Politics & Culture Podcast

Surprises at The Savoy: Franck Arnold on What He Didn't Expect

March 21, 2025 • Dan Harris and Claudia Koestler • Season 3 • Episode 21

0:00 | 2:33

What happens when a hospitality legend takes the helm of a historic institution? In this short clip extract from the feature-length podcast interview with @OverHereOverThere, Franck Arnold, Managing Director at the Savoy in London, opens up about how he actually got the job and about his first impressions and the challenges of leading a legendary hotel.

Are you ready to learn from the best? Watch the full-length interview with Franck Arnold on the " @OverHereOverThere " Podcast here: • Insights from The Savoy London - Interview with The Savoy's Managing Director, Franck Arnold

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#TheSavoy #LuxuryHospitality #LeadershipSecrets #FranckArnold
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Dan Harris

What surprised you when you took over the role here at the Savoy? Anything in particular?

Franck Arnold

Wow. It's..., you know, I was running another hotel before, the Ritz Carlton in Toronto. A wonderful property, wonderful company, and I had a great relationship with the team, with the staff, with the guests, with the owners, with the company, the board, and I was not intending to leave, because we had bought a house in Toronto one year prior. My two eldest sons had started University, one in Toronto, the other one in Kingston in Ontario, and it was Covid! It was Covid!

So, when I received a call from a recruiter in, I think, in May of 2020, I was not looking for a new job. I was just trying to do everything possible to prepare to reopen the Ritz Carlton after the first lockdown - and I got this message from a recruiting headhunter that I had not spoken to in a long time, basically saying:

"Franck, can we get you back to Europe, can we speak tomorrow."

So ...well, I responded, well, I'm not looking. If you want to call me I’ll be on my way to the hotel at that time - because I always I still went to the hotel on a daily basis, because I really am not a person who likes to work from home and so, I was driving and I received a call from this head hunter.

And she said: “Well, can we tempt you back to London, to Europe?”

I said: “Well, London is exciting, but, you know, what are the circumstances and by the way, it's Covid! Everything is closed, why would I leave a job that I have for something that - you know - in an industry that is currently totally shut down? Why should I leave?”

She said, "Well, it's a game changer. It's a regional role plus a Managing Director's job, and it's for the Savoy in London." I literally put my foot on the brake and said, "All right, let me park."

(laughter)

I stopped and said, okay, let's talk. And as soon as she said that - it was just ... I knew, it was the right job for me. You know, I had ... it's like I had prepared myself to get this job!