Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues Geneva

Four Seasons Tenure

• Originally 2018; now since 2019
• First Four Seasons Position: Hostess, Bar-Galerie, Four Seasons Hotel George V, Paris

Employment History

• La Réserve Genève; La Réserve Paris; Sheraton Mallorca Arabella Golf Hotel, Spain; Buddha-Bar Hotel Paris; W Barcelona; Sheraton Djibouti; Four Seasons Hotel George V, Paris

Education

• Bachelor of Business Administration, Paris School of Business; Bachelor of International Business, University of Westminster, London; MBA, International Hotel Management/Hospitality, Vatel France

Birthplace

• Sète, France

Languages Spoken

• French, English, Spanish, Greek

There is no end of details that demand Charlotte Marcenac’s attention at Izumi at Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues Geneva, and none more significant than ways to dazzle guests. “I’m always looking for something to ‘wow’ them, to add another layer to their experience with us,” she says of engaging regulars and travellers as Restaurant Manager of the rooftop Japanese fusion restaurant overlooking Lake Geneva. “Personalization is at the heart of everything we do on our dining floors, always with an eye to enticing guests to return.”

Closing in on her first decade at the historic property that launched the concept of luxury in Geneva, Charlotte has wide experience catering to the cream of the cosmopolitan city, adventurers bound for skiing and hiking, and professionals in town for commerce and events. “‘Watches and Wonders’ will forever be on my internal calendar,” she says with a smile of the annual celebration of Switzerland’s emblematic industry that fills tables at Izumi each April.

Though she started on the rooftop as a supervisor and rose to Assistant Manager over three years, Charlotte sees her current leadership role as “a whole new world,” with constant projects and enhancement of service operations and organization. Her goal is to maintain Izumi’s standing as the #1 destination in Geneva for Nikkei cuisine, whose popularity has grown locally due to the restaurant’s success.

The team Charlotte leads is just over three-dozen strong, split nearly down the middle between the service side and the kitchen. Her approach to management is collaborative and supportive, with skills and knowledge passed along by example, the better to ensure everyone has a clear understanding of Four Seasons standards and why certain things are done certain ways. She also embraces the brand’s philosophy of managing as she would like to be managed and building skills for careers.  

Born in the bustling port city of Sète along the Mediterranean in southeastern France, Charlotte had an international upbringing as her father’s diplomatic work took the family on years-long stays in Costa Rica, Romania, France, and Greece. With an initial interest in marketing and sales, she studied business administration while supplementing her income with part-time work, including as a Hostess at Bar-Galerie at Four Seasons Hotel George V, Paris.

Alas, though, as her studies progressed into internships, she became “quite bored.” “I realized I wasn’t suited for the office,” she recalls of pursuing graduate study in hospitality instead. “I told my parents I wanted to travel and experience other cultures, and they were all for it.”

Good call. Charlotte went on to intern front desks and food and beverage outlets at hotels in Djibouti, Barcelona, and Mallorca, before receiving master’s degree and finding her way to a luxury hotel brand in Paris and Geneva. A little over a year later, she hit peak luxury at Four Seasons, joining Bar des Bergues and working her way behind the bar to satisfy a growing interest in mixology. She trained directly with the Head Bartender, teaming to create new cocktails.

The expertise she built quickly proved beneficial. “My first assignment at Izumi was to fashion a new cocktail menu.”

Still enamoured of travel and cultural discovery, Charlotte is right at home in Geneva, with a fiancé who shares her enthusiasm for standup paddleboarding on the lake and skiing throughout the Alps. “Plus, we love our dog, Ulysse,” she says of her Golden Retriever, who accompanies them on walks and hikes, adding with a laugh: “That’s non-negotiable.”