Paris, September 25, 2013?- Sofitel, the symbol of French elegance and paragon of luxury hospitality around the world, has announced top appointments at two of its North American properties: Jean-Christophe Gras as General Manager of Sofitel Washington DC Lafayette Square, and Stephanie Segoura as General Manager of Sofitel Montreal Golden Mile. Befitting their leadership roles, both are responsible for all operations at their respective addresses, including guiding sales and marketing initiatives and assuring that Sofitel’s unique personality of art de vivre shines through all aspects of their hotels’ guest experiences. Segoura’s appointment also symbolizes the brand’s goal of engaging more women leaders throughout the region, as she is the first Sofitel female General Manager in North America, and the second in the Americas.
Stephanie Segoura
Passionate, loyal and committed to providing the finest guest experience a hotel can deliver, Stephanie has stepped into her first General Manager role at Sofitel Montreal Golden Mile. Her appointment is the crowning achievement of her decade-long career with Sofitel, which began as Director of Sales and Marketing at Sofitel London St James in 2003. Over eight years with the St James address, Segoura played key roles in many accomplishments, including leading the Sales Team to position the hotel as a leading 5-star in London and being part of the development team for the creation and launch of So SPA by Sofitel in 2009.
Segoura transitioned from sales to the hotel floor as Hotel Manager of Sofitel London St James in 2011. She was a key player in the hotel’s success during the Summer Games in London, negotiating and contracting ?2.5 million of Olympic business in 2010, which laid the groundwork for the hotel achieving its highest-ever Average Daily Rate of ?625 over 17 consecutive days in summer 2012.
Prior to joining Sofitel, Segoura held sales-oriented positions at London hotels including Sales and Event Manager and Director of Sales at InterContinental Mayfair London; Conference and Banqueting Manager of Holiday Inn Kensington South; and Conferencing and Banqueting Manager at The Selfridge Hotel. She got her start as Conference and Events Sales Manager at Jarvis London Embassy Hotel in 1995.
Born in Avignon and raised in the South of France, Middle East, Asia and Australia, and fluent in French and English, Segoura earned a Master of Science in International Hotel Management from Oxford Brookes University in Oxford, England, and a degree in Commerce from University de Toulon et Du Var in Toulon, France.
Jean-Christophe Gras
With 14 years of leadership experience with Sofitel North America, Jean-Christophe Gras is a promising choice to guide Sofitel Washington DC Lafayette Square. He arrived in the nation’s capital from the Canadian province of Quebec, where he spent the last 12 years as General Manager of the five-star Sofitel Montreal Golden Mile. Indeed, Gras was integral to the opening team in Montreal, which became the newest flagship for Sofitel’s parent company, Accor, in 2001. In the course of his tenure in Montreal, Gras also spent two years as Regional Vice President, where he supervised all General Managers and led four Sofitel North America addresses.
Prior to his appointment in Montreal, Gras got his start with Sofitel as Director of Operations at Sofitel New York, where he helped oversee the pre-opening and opening of the 398-room hotel. His first experience as a General Manager was at Riverfront Residence, a Novotel property in Bangkok, Thailand. He was also Hotel Manager of Acad?mie ACCOR in ?vry, France; Food and Beverage Director and Hotel Manager of Novotel Saclay in France; and Quality Controller in the Consumerism and Quality Department of ACCOR in ?vry. Gras got his start in the hotel industry as Banquet Manager at Sofitel Miami back in 1987.
A native of Nevers, France, Gras was educated at hotel and catering schools in St. Quentin-en-Yvelines, Bourges and Blois. Fluent in French and English, he was honored as General Manager of the year for Accor North America in 2006 and for Sofitel Americas in 2008, and earned Sofitel Montreal Golden Mile’s accolade as Hotel of the Year by Accor North America in 2007.