«I value work attitude and ethics more than seniority» an interview with Giacomo Maschietto – Augustus Hotel & Resort owner and CEO – on how to face the challenges of the hôtellerie sector
Augustus Hotel & Resort, Forte dei Marmi – in conversation with owner and CEO Giacomo Maschietto
Augustus Hotel & Resort roots back to 1953, when Countess Augusta Pesenti transformed her private residence in Versilia into a hotel. The residence had a typical Italian set up, with a number of villas immersed in the quiet of a park. The opening of the hotel was a first, starting the concept of «diffuse hotel».
Seventy years have passed, and the hotel has expanded, including new buildings and concepts while remaining attached to the philosophy of the origins: the Italian dolce vita and a celebration of vita lenta. The key was also letting innovation in. Giacomo Maschietto, part of the owners’ family as well as CEO of what is today Augustus Hotel & Resort, explains: «what I did is set up a corporate philosophy» rather than sticking to a traditional Italian family business approach.
Augustus Hotel & Resort: a 16.4 million euros revenue in 2023
Today, after seventy years of activity, Augustus Hotel consists of fifteen properties, with hundred and six rooms and more than two hundred beds. The group registered a revenue of fourteen point eight million in 2022 and sixteen point four million in 2023, an achievement Maschietto calls «without precedents» for the Resort.
Growth is not, Maschietto reveals, a consequence of a price increase policy – increases were minimum – but of the high number of bookings. Results are fruit of a program of re-structuring, starting eight years ago. «Today, » he explains, «we have a clear structure, reaching a more than two hundred employees in high season».
As such, «it would have been unthinkable» Maschietto continues, «to work without a proper structure». Data is not the whole point, however; it is about a different way of working. «We operate as a big functional company». The family cohesively supported the changes and development.
‘A very Italian story’: how Augustus Forte dei Marmi was born – a family business
«My grandfather» Maschietto recalls, «started as the director of Augustus hotel under Countess Pesenti». What happened next, he defines as «a very Italian story». Maschietto’s grandfather went on to acquire Pesenti’s properties bit by bit – and then went on: buying the Agelli’s Villa, just next door, and brought the two together «ending up with the structure we now call the Resort».
After that, «La Nave» was added: a 70s looking, more modern building, just behind Villa Pesenti. The Villas in the park, already present among Pesenti’s properties, were opened to the public as private villas. Generations went on, but the will to expand remains. In 2024 two new five-stars villas will join the family: Villa Ala Bianca and Villa Ala Anita, named respectively after Maschietto’s daughter and one of his cousins’.
Society of the experience: a new vision for hospitality at Augustus hotel, under the direction of Maschietto
«Today» Maschietto reports, commenting on his experience in contemporary hôtellerie, «we live in the ‘society of experience’. Tourism often anticipates the experiences that are then applied to physical products». When he started as a CEO, Maschietto recounts, he found himself handling a complex product. «The hotel was vintage but, handled wrong, it risked becoming old – and there is a difference between vintage and old».
Being vintage means meticulously researching and conservating the product, by paying attention to each and every detail. «What we did was adjusting our luxury offer, by putting care in detail, starting from the choice of the right materials, we maintained the focus on vintage while valuing our heritage». There is nothing to make up: the heritage, the vintage, are already there, «what we did, was building a high-end experience around it».
Slow tourism and vita lenta at Augustus: what the hotel and restaurant offer
That may be the key. In a fast-paced world, luxury is enjoying the little things. Privacy, a meal from a restaurant, a twenty-four-hour service for every need, while experiencing a home-like comfort. This is what high-profile costumers are looking for today – and what Augustus aims at providing. «We created a must for Augustus: spending time there means experiencing a kind of tourism that is made of dilated times».
All of a sudden, slowing down seems within reach. Everything is thought and designed accordingly, from the gardens to the 60s bicycles, in direct continuance with the past – «on holiday, one needs to find a slowness we can no longer afford in the rhythms of daily life».
Between tradition and contemporaneity – Villa Ala Anita and Villa Ala Bianca: the newest additions
«The two villas» Maschietto explains, «will once again mirror our heritage, and will complete the park». The starting point is an old and disused building. The space will be doubled with the addition of a further new building. A twin villa, constructed from scratch. «They will be» he anticipates, «an architectural reinterpretation of the liberty-deco style that already characterizes the whole Versilia look, with a more sophisticated and contemporary approach».
There was a thorough study of stylistic elements – which will remain faithful to the liberty-deco aesthetic while being adjusted to contemporaneity. Privacy is at the heart: «guests can be independent, enjoy privacy, but can also enjoy a five-star twenty-four-hours service». The one imperative in the design phase was respecting what was already there: «just as my father has always tried to do in his practice as an architect, we never tried to look for different products – we always wanted to stay in line with the historicity of the site and, as such, we thought of the villas as a continuum to the rest of the complex».
Challenges of working in hospitality – Augustus hotel on work ethics
«If you were to ask me what our biggest challenge is at the moment» Maschietto recounts, «I would doubtlessly say it is to find highly prepared workers who are available and willing to work on a season-base too». The difficulty in finding hospitality workers, it seems, does not spare the luxury industry either. To try and tackle this problem, Maschietto is investing on Human Research, to try and find high-level resources.
Plans for the future, he reveals, might be creating an Academy to train and prepare them in-house. Workers at present depends on locals who come back to work every season causing a high turnover. Maschietto’s approach is to speed with the high competition: «I value work attitude and ethics more than seniority – workers, young people, encouraged to move up».
Augustus Hotel & Resort and beach club
Augustus Hotel & Resort in Forte dei Marmi, is set between the coastline and the Apuan Alps. It is an historical 5-star property, managed today by the Maschietto family.
