“I started moving over more into the concept development part of it and started developing hotels based on private owners having a narrative about something,” says Nicolai Tamakloe, the General Manager at Zoku Copenhagen. With love for hospitality in all forms, Nicolai has worked everywhere from big corporate hotels to small boutique ones. Now, Nicolai works more on the development side of the industry by opening hotels that fit their owners' visions with their own remarkable stories to tell.

Nicolai has always loved traveling, good food and bars, and everything related to the hospitality world; however, he entered the industry somewhat coincidentally. After starting work as a barista after high school, Nicolai quickly became the cafe’s manager and found his passion. From studying in London to opening a restaurant in Copenhagen to opening a hotel with a chocolate factory, Nicolai quickly came to understand the importance of orchestrating beautiful, efficient, and magical spaces for everyone who enters.

Tune into this week’s episode of Pushing Dirt for a stimulating conversation about hotel concept development. Learn about Nicolai’s incredible hospitality journey, how he develops unique and sustainable businesses, and why being a great host is essential to everything that he does.

Quotes

• “I started moving over more into the concept development part of it and started developing hotels based on private owners having a narrative about something. It could be a childhood dream, it could be their previous work, or whatever they had, and I had to kind of change that into a successful hospitality business that told that story.” (03:06-03:37) 

• “For me, the hotel room is sometimes just as important as the city and sometimes more important because it often says something about the city.” (12:22-12:34)

• “You have the full walls, and you have the beautiful design, but it's the people that create it, you know. It's the staff that makes it living, so definitely that's a huge part of it.” (14:43-14:48) 

• “I really started to learn how to be a great host. Because I think at the end of the day, being a great host is essential to everything that you do.” (22:20-22:36)

• “I always pick atmosphere over food. It's great if the two coincide, but you want to get that feeling like this is just a good place to be. You want to be there.” (25:02-25:14)

• “I definitely think we want to be entertained, and we just don't want the average, right? You know, we want something that is inspiring.” (49:27-49:44)

Connect with Nicolai Tamakloe

https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikolaj-tamakloe-1aab80/?originalSubdomain=dk

Connect with Host Camilla Rantsen

IG: @camillarantsen

LinkedIn: Camilla Outzen Rantsen

Facebook: Camilla Outzen Rantsen 

TikTok: @camillarantsen

Twitter @camillarantsen

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm