The Kingsbury welcomes Maurice Cook as new General Manager

Friday, 1 August 2014 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Maurice Cook is an Australian citizen but very much a Sri Lankan at heart as he was born in Wellawatte, Sri Lanka and completed his studies at St Peter’s College, Colombo. What is remarkable about his appointment is the fact that he has returned after 38 years as the General Manager to the very property where he began his career in hospitality as a busboy/waiter back in 1974 to 1976 when it was an Intercontinental. This is tremendously inspirational to the staff at The Kingsbury as they too can take a leaf from his book. His illustrious career has taken him to seven countries and the past 21 years has been spent as the General Manager of Radisson Hotels in Australia, Indonesia, Vanuatu and China. His last stint was in China (Beijing and Shanghai) for over 13 years and that certainly speaks volumes for his credentials.

He left Sri Lanka at the young age of 19 moving to Dubai where he worked for 12 years with Intercontinental and Sheraton Hotels rising from Captain to Asst. Food & Beverage Manager. Thereafter, he moved to Stockholm, Sweden as Food & Beverage Manager of the Sheraton. He migrated to Australia and joined Radisson Hotels as Director of Food & Beverage and at 36 years of age, he was made General Manager. He attended a General Managers Program at the Cornell Hotel School in Ithaca, New York. His biggest and most successful challenge was to open a 396 room hotel in Beijing and a 520 room hotel in Shanghai in four months and he was aptly rewarded with two ‘General Manager of the Year’ Asia Pacific awards. Cook with a Food & Beverage background and extensive knowledge in hotel operationsis in charge of providing initiative, leadership, and direction to ensure efficient and effective operations of The Kingsbury – the latest luxury five-star city hotel in Colombo. Cook noted, “I am honoured and extremely proud to return to Sri Lanka and be associated with the team at The Kingsbury. I would like to thank the owners of The Kingsbury for the commitment and tremendous contribution they have made to the hospitality industry with the introduction of The Kingsbury – which has become the trend setter in many a field in a short period of less than two years. I look forward to marketing The Kingsbury as a premier luxury brand and hotel of choice for families, couples, leisure and corporate clientele.” Cook is so happy to be reunited with his mum who in the past was visited once a year, he noted, “I love my mum so much; being close to her in her twilight years is a blessing and a dream come true!” Cook’s appointment follows Sunil Dissanayake’s retirement as Director/General Manager of The Kingsbury. Dissanayake played a vital role in its growth and contributed vastly to the establishment.