×
App Icon
The Standard e-Paper
Join Thousands of Readers
★★★★ - on Play Store
Download Now

From waiter to GM: Inside the life of veteran hotelier

Vocalize Pre-Player Loader

Audio By Vocalize

ibis Styles General Manager Thomas Simonnet. (Courtesy)

The skies above Nairobi look menacing. However, the expected storm holds off as we sip some house coffee on a rooftop bar in Nairobi's Westlands on Wednesday morning. Do you get mesmerised by the way these baristas artistically weave a flower design in a cup of coffee? I do.

But Thomas Simonnet, the general manager at ibis Styles is not surprised. "They just do what they are accustomed to do," he says with his heavy French inflection.

Premium Article

Get Full Access for Ksh299/Week.

Fact-first reporting that puts you at the heart of the newsroom. Subscribe for full access.
Continue Reading  →
What you get
  • Unlimited access to all premium content
  • Ad-free browsing experience
  • Mobile-optimised reading
  • Weekly newsletters & digests
Pay via
M - PESA
VISA
Airtel Money
Secure Payments Kenya's most trusted newsroom since 1902
Sports
FKF Crisis: Is CHAN insurance saga just the tip of the iceberg?
Sports
SPL: Teams battle for safety and position in tight league run-in
Sports
Kenya prepared to host AFCON 2027 FKF assures
Football
Sports Committee grills embattled FKF boss Hussein Mohammed over CHAN 2024 scandal