It was quite an honor to sit down with the legendary hotelier Isadore Sharp for a lengthly conversation discussing business, leadership and the future of the iconic Four Seasons brand.

　　The Four Seasons Hotel Lion Palace in St. Petersburg is the first Four Seasons in Russia. During our visit, we had the opportunity to interview Isadore Sharp, the Founder and Chairman of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts. It was quite an honor to sit down with the legendary hotelier for a lengthly conversation discussing business, leadership and the future of the iconic Four Seasons brand.

　　What delights were discovered with the Four Seasons Lion Palace, especially with the renovation?

　　What we are able to accomplish with historical renovations is retaining a remembrance of that part of life. The architecture does reflect the people’s life work. It’s retaining that charm and quality, and combining it with modern conveniences to make it work. That’s really what you look to accomplish, not to copy, or try to duplicate. We make sure these design elements have traditional aspects that are consistent with the times.

　　Each Four Seasons reflects the hotel’s city in the design and experience. For visitors, how does this property extend the St. Petersburg experience?

　　Probably more so than anything that we could build from scratch. As you must have experienced when you first walked in, it’s not like a hotel lobby. It wasn’t a lobby, it wasn’t a hotel at that time. It gives people a very good first impression of this city, “Wow, this is a beautiful spot.”

　　On the culinary side, how do you think that the food and wine here embraces the Russian culture?

　　The food is going to be the latest style and in vogue. The hotel includes both Japanese and Italian restaurants. In some places, you might want to make food indigenous, which you could do, because the chef will prepare anything you want. If you said, “I’d like an original Russian Borscht,” you’ll get it, as we do have that on the menu. We’re not necessarily going to have a Russian menu, but you will have food that would be indigenous to the Russian culinary history.

　　Every chef would certainly be conscious of making sure they can meet local customers’ needs. That’s what the word indigenous means, it’s not just the architecture, it’s not just the art, it’s the people. They give you the flavor of the country.

　　With the Four Seasons Moscow property opening in 2014, in the heart of Red Square, what are your impressions of that project?

　　The concept of it is overwhelming. It’s huge, an entire city block. When you see the scale of this project, the hotel is the smallest part of it. It’s a retail complex, office building and apartments. The prominence of the building and the location takes your breath away. I’m standing on Red Square looking at the building and I say, “How did this happen?” We are creating this building in the most important city in Russia, and it’s the Four Seasons.

　　If I’m overwhelmed with it, figure that out. That’s the impression you get. We’re just fortunate. Both St. Petersburg and Moscow, that’s a one-two punch. We’ve never had that kind of impact in any city.

　　The outbound market that is going to come from here to other Four Seasons hotels is going to be a huge benefit. I’ve always said, and it’s a fact, that every new Four Seasons hotel creates value for every other Four Seasons hotel. We opened up in Hangzhou. A beautiful small hotel in China. There’s no doubt that the Chinese people who went to that hotel are going to remember that experience. When traveling to New York, they’ll ask “Is there a Four Seasons Hotel?” That’s the impact we’re going to get.

　　As you travel to these amazing destinations and step back to view these impressive properties, having built the Four Seasons brand, what goes through your head?

　　We have another new Four Seasons Hotel and that they meet the standards that we’re attempting to be consistent with. Yes, I’m proud of it. It’s what I’ve been doing for 50 years.

　　Even though there are over 30 hotels that we no longer own or operate, for whatever reason, every one of them has been an important building block in Four Seasons’ history. Every one of them. Even the ones that don’t even come close to looking like a Four Seasons today. At the time, it allowed us to take the next step. I’ve always thought that each time we’ve made a deal, that this is going to help the company. And they did. Whether it’s the first motor hotel in Toronto that got us started, or a training center in Belleville, Ontario, which was ridiculous.

　　Thinking about it, it was a business deal that helped us keep people, and it made a little money to keep us in business. Even though they have no meaning in the longer term, but that year, that next step, it helped.

　　Speaking of which, what is the next step in travel for affluent consumers?

　　Everywhere. As Friedman says, the world is now flat. There’s not going to be anyplace that people won’t find out about, and they’ll be looking for more and more exotic places to go to. Like our elephant camp, with tents and 18 rooms, that’s spectacular. We will only go to places that can support a Four Seasons hotel. We’re not about to just go there because somebody wants to build a Four Seasons.