Belmond Cap Juluca’s General Manager, for the time being, is Mr. Pedro Dias, who was born in Portugal.
He recently arrived in Anguilla from New York where he was for the past thirteen and a half years. “Originally I am Portuguese – born and raised – and I was working in Portugal right before I went to New York,” he told The Anguillian newspaper.
“I have been working in the hospitality industry since I was 15. My father was in the industry as well, and retired from it. So it is like coming from a veteran of hospitality. I completed my studies in Portugal and continued to be involved in hospitality.
“I think I was inspired by my father. When I was 15 he opened a restaurant in the south of Portugal. At first there were only two waiters: one was him and the other me, and I knew nothing about it. I worked just for the fun of it and, since then, I never stopped – and it created an appetite in me to explore even more, although I believed it was in my DNA.”
Mr. Dias is a graduate in Hospitality Management from a Portuguese School. He did his post-graduate studies in Switzerland, and additional certification at Cornell University in the United States.
Before travelling to New York he worked as Director of Operations at an extensive resort, in the south of Portugal, managed by Starwood Capital Group, a global hospitality company. “Starwood invited me to come to New York to take on the hotel manager role, at St. Regis, which is a very iconic brand and a very important hotel for the company,” he stated. “I took on the challenge as I wanted to explore the world.”
About his current sojourn in Anguilla, Mr. Dias commented: “I follow where the opportunity is. Anguilla is very exciting and the projects, that Tiago have been leading, have been very successful – and I felt that this would be a good chance for me to continue his successful work; to get to know a different people and culture; and try to blend in – and that is one of my passions.”
He added: “I think that Anguilla, so far, has provided a very welcoming experience for me. With the team here, and even at Customs at the harbour, I have had the most welcoming experience. The people in Anguilla are very friendly and I am very happy to be here.”
