Tallaght girl overseeing major refurbishment at Maldron Hotel
By Maurice Garvey
THE economic climate is more appealing for hoteliers today that at the height of the recession, but it doesn’t leave any time for complacency, according to recently appointed GM at the Maldron, Tallaght, Alison Mansfield.
Tallaght native Alison (no relation to former Citywest supremo Jim Mansfield) - “I always get asked that” - is currently overseeing a major refurbishment at the Maldron.
“We renovated the gym last year and will have four floors of bedrooms finished on February 9. Of the 119 bedrooms in the hotel, we still have 44 to refurbish. Since 2016, we have seen an increase in demand from customers for hotels in the outskirts of Dublin. We have had an awful lot of people staying with us, saying they want to see more of the Wicklow mountains.”
“I have been begging central office (Dalata headquarters in Sandyford) for more funds. There hasn’t been a large investment in the Maldron. Citywest and the Red Cow have carried out refurbishments, we are probably catching up, so I keep asking for more.”
Growing up in Old Bawn, Mansfield caught the hospitality bug whilst working in the Dragon Pub in Tallaght Village as a teenager.
A school teacher at Old Bawn CS recommended she apply for a training management programme with Drurys, and her first working role in the industry was none other than the five-star Westbury Hotel.
“It was a good place to start, you train in fine dining there is a fantastic over-the-top customer service, celebrities, and people who may be treating themselves to a once a year gift.”
From the Westbury, Mansfield increased her experience at four and three-star hotels in Ireland and the UK.
Perhaps her most challenging time was opening and closing the Glashaus in Tallaght within a year in 2009.
She continued: “It’s completely different to have to close a place. You can’t prep to get busy, hoping the market will pick up. The whole place is in lockdown, trying to sort out people’s reservations, how to help staff, and arrange solutions for food and beverages.
“It was quite a stressful time. I wasn’t GM then but had a team under me. Luckily within two weeks, nearly all of them had new jobs.”
Mansfield began working with Dalata after the Glashaus, but admits her early career training at the Westbury has been a major influence in keeping high “expectations” for how a business is run.
“If you are not willing to change in the hotel industry, you need to move out. Tourists are different now than they were 10 years ago. Big things you are looking at now are management yield, trends and Google analytics.
“People are a lot more conscious of what they are getting for their money. It is very evident in Ireland that if anything is below par, you will hear about it. Irish people are willing to speak out and want to see better quality.
“A three-star hotel has to be as good as a five-star. It is important to look at ways to make customers’ stay better. People have gotten so savvy with the cost of travel. There is more pressure on hoteliers but we have better resources to manage that.”
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