A visit to Ralf J. Kutzner
Semperoper, Frauenkirche, Zwinger: the city's most famous sights are within walking distance of the hotel, but the highlight of Dresden is the Bülow Palais itself - an oasis of calm in the urban hustle and bustle and a temporary home for guests for whom warm service is just as important as cuisine and interior design.
Mr Kutzner, we're sitting here in the Cigar Lounge at Bülow Palais - and I can see a lot of non-smokers! Isn't that a bit unusual?
No, the non-smokers often outnumber the smokers! Thanks to excellent ventilation and a very cosy interior, many guests enjoy their time here in our hotel.
Why did you become a hotelier? Do you have a family background or what is the reason for your passion for the hotel business?
Originally, I grew up in a middle-class family home without being influenced by the hotel / catering industry. The values my parents instilled in me were crucial for the hotel industry.
Reading people's wishes from their lips was a gift that my mother passed on to me. At first, my job was to set the table beautifully, later I was allowed to help my mum prepare the food. Enjoying food at a young age was the foundation for my future developme
Mr Kutzner, we're sitting here in the Cigar Lounge at Bülow Palais - and I can see a lot of non-smokers! Isn't that a bit unusual?
No, the non-smokers often outnumber the smokers! Thanks to excellent ventilation and a very cosy interior, many guests enjoy their time here in our hotel.
Why did you become a hotelier? Do you have a family background or what is the reason for your passion for the hotel business?
Originally, I grew up in a middle-class family home without being influenced by the hotel / catering industry. The values my parents instilled in me were crucial for the hotel industry.
Reading people's wishes from their lips was a gift that my mother passed on to me. At first, my job was to set the table beautifully, later I was allowed to help my mum prepare the food. Enjoying food at a young age was the foundation for my future development.
Can you learn to be a hotelier or do you have to be born for it?
The profession of hotelier can of course be learnt. Basically, it is important to have a positive attitude to life and to make other people happy with your service. Every hotel needs a soul!
Guest contact is one of the most important things in the daily routine. To run a hotel well, it's important to be flexible and to gain as much experience as possible at a young age.
Your career has often taken you abroad - Gstaad, Hong Kong, Edinburgh, London - and to the most beautiful hotels there. What prompted you to return to Germany and take over the Bülow Palais Dresden in 1993?
My friend Franz Feckl from Ehningen (near Böblingen), who himself runs a beautiful hotel and an excellent restaurant, called me in London at the time and told me that he had regular guests called Bülow who were looking for someone to open a hotel for them in Dresden. This was the beginning of an incredible success story for me and my family in a great city with lovely people, an excellent team and owners who placed their trust in me, for which I am still grateful today.
Can you learn to be a hotelier or do you have to be born for it?
The profession of hotelier can of course be learnt. Basically, it is important to have a positive attitude to life and to make other people happy with your service. Every hotel needs a soul!
Guest contact is one of the most important things in the daily routine. To run a hotel well, it's important to be flexible and to gain as much experience as possible at a young age.
Your career has often taken you abroad - Gstaad, Hong Kong, Edinburgh, London - and to the most beautiful hotels there. What prompted you to return to Germany and take over the Bülow Palais Dresden in 1993?
My friend Franz Feckl from Ehningen (near Böblingen), who himself runs a beautiful hotel and an excellent restaurant, called me in London at the time and told me that he had regular guests called Bülow who were looking for someone to open a hotel for them in Dresden. This was the beginning of an incredible success story for me and my family in a great city with lovely people, an excellent team and owners who placed their trust in me, for which I am still grateful today.
How does your day start at Bülow Palais?
I go through all the departments and try to greet every employee. As we now have employees from 16 different countries and three continents in the team, I try to greet one or two of them in their own language.
At the front office, I find out whether there have been any significant incidents during the night. In the morning meeting with the head of department, we discuss all the important matters relating to the day's work. And then the day takes its course....
The hotel's website has the slogan "There's no such thing as impossible" under your contact details. It can be difficult to fulfil this. What has been the biggest challenge in this respect so far?
We experience challenges on a regular basis. I like to remember one of them: Next to the Bülow Palais is the Dreikönigskirche, from whose tower you have a wonderful view over the whole of Dresden. A young man who wanted to propose to his future wife asked us to set a festive table on the tower and serve a beautiful menu up there. He also wanted a classical trio to accompany them during the meal.
(Since then, the happy couple have spent several wedding anniversaries with us).
They have been the managing director of Bülow Palais for 31 years. You could almost call that an era. How has the hotel developed under your leadership and what have you emphasised in particular?
The interest and curiosity with which guests visited the Bülow Residenz right from the start was unexpectedly high. Shortly after the opening in 1993, we had to enlarge the kitchen to meet demand.
With the opening of the Bülow Palais, we were able to fulfil all of our guests' wishes, which we could only fulfil to a limited extent due to the structural conditions in the Bülow Residenz. The number of employees grew from 16 at the beginning to almost 90 today! Having experienced a number of gastronomic trends over the past decades, we now attach great importance to sustainability in the purchasing and processing of products.
The Bülow Hotels are an expression of a lifestyle that is characterised by a canon of values consisting of tradition, family spirit, cultural affinity and discretion.
A hotel stands and falls with its employees. How do you motivate and encourage your employees? What type of boss are you?
Back to the soul of the hotel, the employees. In times of a shortage of skilled labour, it is all the more important to create a climate in which employees feel comfortable and secure.
It is important that we communicate clearly to young people what we expect from them. We ask ourselves at the recruitment stage whether the person is enthusiastic about making other people happy. Once someone has become part of our team, they usually stay. The tone makes the music. Working together as equals and appreciating each other are important prerequisites for achieving our goals. To ensure that I am able to deliver the performance that I expect from myself and my team, I have a congenial partner, friend and a great mum to our five children in my wife, who supports me wherever possible.
With another common guiding principle: "The best time is always now", we are grateful for the development of the past 30 years and look forward to the time ahead with confidence!
Do you have a favourite place in the hotel?
Yes, but my favourite places change... I can't decide on one...
Last question: If I'm staying with you and want to explore Dresden, what should I not miss?
From the tower of the Dreikönigskirche you have a marvellous view over the beauty of the whole of Dresden - even without a wedding proposal!
YOUR HOST AT THE HOTEL BÜLOW PALAIS DRESDEN
You can reach Ralf J. Kutzner at www.buelow-palais.de or by e-mail at info.palais@buelow-hotels.de.
Thank you very much for the great interview!
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