Affinia Hotels Hires World-Renowned Mixologist to Train Associates from Bellmen to Housekeepers

NEW YORK, July 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- A first for the hotel industry, boutique hotel company Affinia Hotels, with properties in NYC and Washington, D.C., has hired a bartender to train hotel staff on 'The Spirit of Hospitality: The Art of Being Present.'  Dushan Zaric, widely known for his out-of-the-box mixology seminars for bartenders, is training the staff on how to be present and that how they feel when they are doing their jobs has a powerful effect on guests.

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The unique training, developed exclusively for Affinia Hotels, is the next step in the evolution of Affinia's Tender Loving Comfort^® (TLC) movement, a service-based initiative that launched in October of 2011.

All hotel associates, from housekeepers to bellmen, will experience this new training which is taking place at the hotels this week.  Zaric, who is co-founder of the American Bartending Institute of New York and one of the 50 Most Influential Tastemakers of 2012^*, will guide trainees through hands-on experiments designed to demonstrate the power of a positive attitude, as well as exercises to help maintain focus.

"With this training, we're furthering our goal to deliver TLC through all aspects of the brand from reservations to check out and everything in between," said Chrissy Denihan O'Donovan, chief comfort officer of Affinia Hotels.

In one exercise each attendee creates a Negroni cocktail (a gin-based aperitif) using identical ingredients and directions.  In doing so they will find that each drink tastes different based on the state-of-mind of its creator.  The lesson in the glass?  State of mind affects the quality of the product and the service they deliver, whether they are making beds, checking in guests or booking a reservation.

Additionally, TLC takes this customer-centric brand to the next level by encouraging guest feedback to shape the hotel experience with the following components: a TLC Crew comprised of members from each property, who collect guest feedback; daily Comfort Hour at each hotel, where guests have a chance to mingle with staff and enjoy complimentary snacks and beverages; and a Comfort Cart from which guests can sample and provide feedback on new amenities free of charge.

* Forbes Magazine 2012

SOURCE Affinia Hotels