"Embrace the crazy ones." - Christoph Hoffmann, Founder 25hours

From Doubt to Drive – Entrepreneurs Only

Today, we have Christoph Hoffmann, Founder of 25hours Hotels (https://www.25hours-hotels.com/en), with the motto: "You know one, you know none." Founded 20 years ago by four entrepreneurs, 25hours currently operates 15 hotels in 7 countries. After being sold and integrated into Ennismore (https://ennismore.com/) , controlled by Accor (https://all.accor.com/a/en.html) , the brand unlocked tremendous growth potential, with 9 more hotels in the pipeline across 6 new countries, including Indonesia and Australia.

With 2.000 employees and almost 40 culinary outlets, including NENI (check out the episode with founder Haya Molcho here on this channel, https://podfollow.com/1737382333/episode/5a15ead11675127da3ae0d6f43e666573729688d/view, Christoph discusses how she and other F&B heroes shaped the brand positioning of 25hours Hotels through their culinary focus.

Christoph is also the co-founder of Bikini Island and Mountain Hotels Group, currently operating 2 hotels. (https://www.bikini-hotels.com/)
He explains how, only after the exit and achieving financial freedom, he developed Schwellenangst (fear of threshold of boarders) about starting something new, as the strong relationships he built at 25hours made it difficult to venture into the unknown.

Our key takeaways from the conversation are:

• Create something you are proud of.


• A leader needs trust and freedom to succeed.


• You have to stick to passion, fun, and beauty.


• “You know one, you know none.” - A creative approach to introducing something new to the market, following the motto “Spaß an der Freude.”


• Brand standards and procedures are important, but you don’t need to have a solution for everything—sometimes you just have to let it go.


• If you have several shareholders, trust and freedom for the leading one are crucial for success.


• Leadership through collaboration and trust.


• Surround yourself with positive people, especially during crises.


• Embrace the crazy ones.


• In hospitality, finding the right mix between being relaxed and professional is key.


• In crises, find the right people to help you.


• With success comes Schwellenangst

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Recorded on 6th June 2024 via Zoom in Switzerland (Christoph Hoffmann) – Mirissa, Sri Lanka (Mario C. Bauer) – Portugal (Axel Weber).