Photo Credit: Design Hotels
I am so excited to feature the founders of The Robey because they exemplify what it means to involve the community into a hotel. After discovering the property on the Design Hotels website and realizing how close it was to my neighborhood in Chicago, I made it my business to read all about The Robey! Carlos and Moises hire local teams every time they built a hotel because they want to make sure to integrate the local culture into the properties they built.
I quickly also discovered that Carlos and Moises are the founders of Grupo Habita which includes 13 properties across Mexico and the U.S.
Stay tuned for a special feature we are doing on The Robey that will give you a preview of this beautiful property in the neighborhood of Wicker Park.
As hoteliers, what is a typical day for you?
As a hotelier, you are on duty 24 hours a day. You start early, leave late and should be reachable at any time of the day.
I love to hear my friends say that they plan to open a hotel when they retire! They definitely don’t know what they are talking about …
Were you in the hotel business before? If not, what did you do?
I am also a citrus farmer in Mexico. My three business partners were in the banking business before they became hoteliers.
What inspired you to go into the hospitality industry?
Hospitality is the sort of business that mixes most of the things I like in life: architecture, design, gastronomy, social dynamism and, human kindness. When you find the right formula between these ingredients, your hotel is a success.
Describe The Robey Chicago in three words.
Historic, relevant, ageless.
How are your hotels impacting the hotel industry?
Grupo Habita is innovative, inventive and authentic. We prefer to think of ourselves as leaders and not as followers.
You own eleven hotels in a few different places, why did you choose Chicago?
Chicago for us represents the essence of the American culture. It is also a city that can be extremely sophisticated and basic at the same time. You go from an amazing art museum to a baseball field in a couple of hours. And then, after the game, you eat the best food in all of North America.
What kind of experience and memory of Chicago are you hoping your guests leave with?
Truth. Chicago is a 100% honest city.
Why is it important for your hotels to represent the community they are built in?
Locals make your property relevant. If they embrace your hotel, they will promote it, live it and celebrate it. The human aspect of our brand is the most important one.