Company Description
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About Fairmont Hotels & Resorts: At Fairmont Hotels & Resorts we offer our guests the finest hospitality experience in each of our destinations. We know that to offer our guests the best, we first need to offer our employees the best. That is why you'll find exceptional work opportunities-throughout North America and the Caribbean, Europe and Africa, the Middle East and Asia Pacific-as well as industry-leading training, career development, recognition and rewards, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts is a celebrated collection of hotels that included landmark locations like London's The Savoy, New York's The Plaza and Shanghai's Fairmont Peace Hotel. Our teams are guided by values of Respect, Integrity, Teamwork and Empowerment: we employ the highest ethical and quality standards, treating all colleagues with fairness and dignity. A community and environmental leader, Fairmont is also regarded for responsible tourism practices and award-winning Green Partnership program. An exciting future awaits!
Do what you love, care for the world, dare to challenge the status quo! #BELIMITLESS
Cape Grace, A Fairmont Managed Hotel, sits on a private quay at Cape Town’s V&A Waterfront — one of the most coveted addresses in African luxury hospitality. With 113 keys, Two MICHELIN Keys and the Condé Nast Traveller Triple Crown, Cape Grace is recognised globally as a benchmark of intimate five-star luxury. This is not a corporate hotel. It is a property with a distinct personality, a loyal international following and an ambition to be counted among the best in the world.
Job Description
Position scope:
The Director of Sales & Marketing holds full accountability for the commercial positioning, brand narrative and integrated revenue contribution of Cape Grace. The role combines the revenue-driving rigour of a Director of Sales with the luxury brand intelligence and communications sophistication required of a Director of Marketing and PR. Working closely with the Director of Revenue, Distribution & Reservations and the broader Executive Committee, this position shares accountability for delivery on the hotel’s total revenue budget across all departments. Active sales actions led by this role are expected to drive a significant portion of rooms revenue, and the DOSM is a primary commercial partner to the General Manager in achieving overall Gross Operating Profit targets. In the absence of the General Manager, the DOSM works directly with and supports the Hotel Manager in all commercial matters. The DOSM is also expected to contribute to the hotel’s ownership reporting and represent the business credibly and confidently in all stakeholder engagements.
Duties and responsibilities:
Commercial Leadership & Revenue Contribution
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Provides commercial leadership across all revenue-generating segments and works closely with the General Manager, in whose absence all commercial matters are escalated to the Hotel Manager.
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Develops, owns and executes the annual Sales & Marketing Plan, incorporating segmentation strategy, account targets, marketing investment, PR calendar and production goals, prepared and submitted at budget periods for General Manager and ownership approval.
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Leads active sales actions across all market segments that are expected to drive a significant portion of the hotel’s rooms revenue. Works alongside the Director of Revenue, Distribution & Reservations and the Executive Committee to collectively deliver on the total revenue budget.
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Sets overall strategy for all inbound operators and wholesalers, travel agents, leisure corporate markets, MICE, incentive travel and group business — locally and internationally.
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Reviews market share performance regularly; holds the active commercial response strategy and co-ordinates with Revenue on rate, segment and channel adjustments.
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Drives the strategic growth of Food & Beverage and Spa revenue through innovative sales initiatives, targeted promotions, partnerships, and integrated marketing campaigns that position the hotel’s dining and wellness experiences as key commercial drivers.
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Reviews P&L results monthly and implements short-term commercial strategies accordingly. Contributes to the commercial pipeline section of monthly and quarterly ownership financial review presentations.
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Controls Sales & Marketing expenses and realigns budget allocation according to business performance and competitive conditions.
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Supports budgeting and forecasting across all revenue-generating departments.
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Participates in the weekly Joint Commercial Meeting alongside the Director of Revenue, Distribution & Reservations and the General Manager as a non-negotiable commercial cadence.
Brand, Marketing, PR & Communications
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Acts as brand custodian for Cape Grace — guardian of the hotel’s visual identity, tone of voice, luxury positioning and narrative across all channels, internal and external.
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Develops and executes the hotel’s integrated marketing strategy: brand storytelling, PR, digital, social, content, paid media, email and partnerships — all anchored to measurable commercial outcomes.
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Manages the hotel’s luxury PR strategy, including relationships with international and local media, influencers, award bodies and trade press. Protects and actively grows Cape Grace’s award and recognition portfolio across all major luxury travel publications and guides.
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Sets and drives the strategic ambition for Cape Grace’s signature experiences, with a strong emphasis on positioning its Food & Beverage concepts, culinary identity, bars, and dining experiences as leading luxury destinations within the international hospitality landscape, while achieving maximum brand recognition, visibility, and commercial impact.
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Owns and evolves the Where Cape Town Lives brand awareness campaign and all future brand campaigns targeting international luxury travellers.
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Manages all digital channels: website, brand pages, social media, email marketing, SEO/SEM and paid media. Defines KPIs and tracks performance against commercial targets.
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Oversees all collateral, photography, video and brand asset production to luxury standard. No branded output leaves the hotel without DOSM sign-off.
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Manages relationships with the PR agency, digital agency, creative suppliers and Fairmont’s global and regional marketing teams. Monitors production and ROI.
Key Account Management & Trade Relations
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Identifies and manages key accounts across all market segments; establishes SMART goals and detailed action plans per account.
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Ensures Cape Grace is prominently represented with all major luxury consortia programmes and positioned as the preferred choice within those networks. Ensures all internal teams understand programme requirements and benefits.
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Maintains well-established relationships across the national and international travel industry, including the Fairmont global sales office network and GDS platforms.
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Organises and hosts qualified FAM trips; manages quarterly account reviews with key corporate and leisure accounts.
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Actively participates in Cape Town trade organisations and international trade shows as a senior ambassador for the property and as approved by the General Manager.
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Develops active communication and close rapport with national and local tourism offices, airline partners and other commercial sources.
Ownership & Stakeholder Engagement
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Reports directly to the General Manager. In the General Manager’s absence, works directly with and supports the Hotel Manager across all commercial functions.
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Contributes to monthly and quarterly ownership review presentations — presenting commercial performance, competitive context, brand momentum and forward pipeline with clarity and commercial confidence.
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Provides feedback on business performance on a monthly and quarterly basis to the hotel’s ownership, the Fairmont corporate team and other stakeholders.
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Co-ordinates Cape Grace’s participation in Fairmont multi-property and company-wide campaigns, balancing global brand requirements with the hotel’s independent luxury positioning.
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Demonstrates a genuine commitment to the hotel’s corporate social investment strategy, including the Laureus Sport for Good partnership, and ensures the brand’s involvement is consistent with its values and community positioning.
People Leadership
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Manages, recruits, develops and performance-manages the full Sales & Marketing team.
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Sets SMART performance goals for every direct report; conducts formal mid-year and annual reviews in line with Fairmont performance management standards.
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Develops and executes succession planning within the department; identifies and grows internal talent.
Builds a high-performance, commercially curious team culture — one that is as comfortable with a luxury media award call as with a monthly pace report.
Qualifications
Qualifications and Experience
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Minimum 8–10 years’ experience in luxury hospitality sales and marketing, with a minimum of 3 years at Director or senior leadership level. Luxury hotel experience required.
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Demonstrable experience working with or within a luxury hotel brand management company (Fairmont or equivalent international luxury operator).
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Proven track record of revenue contribution against rooms budget in a comp-set-competitive environment. References required.
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Deep understanding of luxury PR strategy — award nomination cycles, media relations with international luxury travel press, influencer engagement and brand narrative management.
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Experience preparing and presenting commercial performance reports and forward strategy to hotel ownership or investor audiences.
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Strong knowledge of the South African luxury travel landscape and well-established relationships across the international trade, including US, UK, GCC, European and African source markets.
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Proficiency with Opera PMS, Salesforce or equivalent CRM, GDS platforms and digital analytics tools.
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Degree or Diploma in Marketing, Business, Communications or Hospitality Management preferred. MBA or equivalent executive education is an advantage.
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Full MS Office proficiency (Excel, PowerPoint, Word). Strong PowerPoint capability for ownership and stakeholder presentations is essential.
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Only candidates who are South African citizens, permanent residents, or who hold a valid and current authorisation to work in South Africa will be considered for this position. Cape Grace, A Fairmont Managed Hotel, does not sponsor work visas and will not enter into any visa application process on behalf of applicants for this role.
Additional Information
EMPLOYMENT EQUITY
We as a company are committed to diversity and inclusion. Our Employment Equity Plan and Targets will be considered during the recruitment process. We welcome applications from individuals with disabilities and diverse backgrounds.
