Hotelier with a Heart
Keith Graham stands up to tough times.
Keith Graham is a veteran of the St. Maarten hotel world. Born in Hong Kong to British parents, he was raised and educated in the United Kingdom. Now he’s Executive Board Member and Treasurer of the St. Maarten Hospitality & Trade Association. His story exemplifies the old adage: When the going gets tough, the tough get going.
Graham arrived on the island in 1983 to work as Financial Controller at the Great Bay Beach Hotel. In later years he worked as well with Divi and Maho resorts before returning to Great Bay in 1992 as Managing Director.
“And that’s when my involvement with SHTA really got going,” he says.
In 1995, Hurricane Luis brought considerable damage to the island’s Dutch side. Because of Great Bay’s southern beach location, the hotel bore the brunt of Luis’s Category 4 winds and swells.
“Sixty percent of the hotel was badly damaged,” Graham recalls, “but we were able to rebuild in four construction months, opening again in January 1996 with half the rooms and all the public areas completed, and finally completing the rest by April 1996.”
But the hurricane’s damage had long-term effects on the island’s tourism product, so an Emergency Recovery Fund was established in 1999.
“That was an equal partnership of tourism, government and the private sector; and there was an environmental consideration, too,” Graham says. “We ran a marketing program for two or three years, and the SHTA appointed Emil Lee and me to be the private sector representatives.”
“Things ran very smoothly,” Graham says, “because all the interested parties were on the same page. Everything geared to marketing the tourism product was evaluated, properly set up and paid for on time.
“With everyone working together, we were able to cast our tourism net far and wide. We were able to bring in the South American charters and increase the US. and Canadian market share. We also went to Europe for summer charter flights. Frankly, we were able to work wonders.”
That was the case as well in 2017, Graham says. Hurricane Irma caused even more damage than Luis, but the island quickly rebuilt and rebounded.
In Graham’s view, “St. Maarten has everything for tourism one could want from a tropical island: beautiful beaches, spectacular green hills, duty-free shopping, world-class restaurants and a vibrant nightlife. And, of course, this island is two countries in one, with visitors able to pop into the French part to enjoy that distinctive culture — and you don’t even have to show your passport. With the completion of the resorts, we are proud to welcome visitors to our beautiful island.”