Toni Horrach, CEO of HM Hotels. Photos: Piter Castillo.
“The greatest ally of deseasonalisation is climate change”
Toni Horrach, CEO de HM Hotels, highlights his connection with the values that marked his past as a football goalkeeper: responsibility, teamwork, and self-improvement. entrepreneur of the year in the Balearic Islands in 2019 and president of the Hotel Business Federation of Mallorca between 2007 and 2010, Horrach combines simplicity and professionalism, rejecting formalities such as a tie. “I feel good looking people in the eye, not whether they are wearing a suit, a blazer or a watch,” he tells us in the incomparable setting of the HM Palma Blanc hotel.
– How was Horrach Moyá Hotels born?
– In 2002, when I was less than 30 years old, I proposed to my parents to let me manage directly the family hotels they were renting at the time. “Do you know how much other chains pay?” my father said. I said yes, and that not only would I pay more, but I would set up a company in which the whole family would share in the profits. And he couldn’t say no. We rented the Martinique for 100 million pesetas, which at the time was a huge amount. I slept in the hotel, fixed lifts, and did everything to make the project go ahead. Today we manage 23 hotels. It has turned out better than I could have imagined, honestly.
– Did you not feel respect or fear in creating a chain in a market like Mallorca dominated by hotel giants?
– I was young, without complexes and with a lot of desire, and in the end, desire conquers all. I had a lot of respect for the big hoteliers because they are real phenomena, but I was convinced that we were going to do well. Besides, I have discovered great hoteliers in the smallest hotels, and that is the true essence of the hotel business. A representative of a large hotel company told me, “tourism intelligence is for us, the big ones,” and even then, it sounded to me like an old and arrogant speech. Tourism is not defined by size.
– What sets HM Hotels apart from other hotel chains?
– Our commitment to Mallorca, to art, culture, gastronomy and, in short, to what is ours. At Hotel Balanguera, we wanted the Mediterranean essence of the Mallorcan anthem to be present. It speaks of traditions, of the elderly, of children, and we used these values as a common thread to define our identity and spread it throughout the company. For example, 98% of the refurbishment of the HM Palma Blanc was done by local people, although we could have opted for cheaper companies from outside. In gastronomy, we wanted to give the hotel a boost with Andreu Genestra, a Michelin-starred Mallorcan. The same thing is happening with the complete refurbishment of the Jaime III, it is being done by companies from the island and its identity, its spirit, is going to be maintained. Maybe I don’t sell it too much, but there is a real commitment. It’s like art, you don’t need to explain it, but you feel it.
“The eco-tax is not a problem today, and the tourist can pay it perfectly well”
– Speaking of art, how would you define the contribution of your brother Juan Antonio, a much-missed and renowned gallery owner, to the HM Hotels brand?
– My brother’s influence is evident when you step into one of our hotels. When he added his touch, he took the hotels to another level. He was unique, with an overwhelming personality in the art world. His death in 2022 was a terrible blow. He was at a racecourse in France watching his son Guillermo and where our three horses finished first, third, and seventh. The last words he said to Guille were “I’m so proud I think I’m going to collapse.” My brother died of joy, of happiness, which is a very beautiful thing. I know that if my brother could have chosen the perfect scenario, that was it. Others may say “let’s make a brand where art will stand out,” but it’s not authentic, not like him. My brother didn’t care if we didn’t make money, he was faithful to his idea of art. It’s his great contribution and we try to maintain his legacy.
– Do you plan to resume gallery activity?
– It doesn’t make sense. It would be like a sequel that only takes advantage of the success of a great film or a great book. A Horrach Moyá gallery opened without him would lack the most important thing: his heart. We get offers to keep it going, but I feel that, if he were to see it from above, he would say to me: “What are you doing?” There are people who think the opposite, that how can I let Horrach Moyà die. And I tell them that it’s obvious, that the art gallery was him, with all its aspects and nuances.
Toni Horrach, on one of the terraces of the HM Palma Blanc hotel.
– Mallorca has filled up with high-end hotels in just a few years, is it becoming an elitist destination?
– I like to go for the higher categories, for reinvestment and for the destination to grow in this sense. If we increase the category we can raise prices, which is the inertia we are in, and we also see that demand is not affected. But, on the other hand, I am worried about ‘eliticising’ the destination, turning it into a Monaco. I know it clashes with the previous idea, but I think everyone should have the right to travel to Mallorca, not just those who can afford it.
– What do you think about the anti-tourism demonstrations?
– I would be very concerned if tourists came to Mallorca and felt that they were not welcome. I would like to see more social peace in this respect. And it is essential to communicate better what tourism brings and to highlight the impact of tourism on our economy. Tourism is not only the hotel business, it affects notaries, electricians, lawyers, bricklayers…. It is an activity that benefits everyone, although people’s perception is that hoteliers get rich, smoke cigars and go to the Dominican Republic, which I think is very unfair.
– Perhaps the hotel sector is partly to blame for this perception, right?
– No doubt about it. Sometimes, as a collective, we have been a bit whiny. We have complained a lot, for example, about the eco-tax, and that has reached people. And we are the ones who can complain the least because we have done well. But we do a lot of things for the island, more than it seems. Although we are very good at selling beds, it is clear that we are not good at selling ourselves.
– Has the eco-tax affected demand?
– Not at all. I am concerned about other taxes, about those that go by ‘the fewer people pay and the more they pay, the better’. In the past we said that the eco-tax was double taxing the tourist and that it was unnecessary. You have to look at it in perspective, because our hotel plant was lower priced and we needed very high occupancies to earn a little. Today it is not a problem and the tourist can pay for it perfectly well. I am in favour as long as, of course, the proceeds are used for tourism.
The CEO of HM Hotels, during the interview with Mallorca Global Mag.
– What do you have to say about the housing problem?
– The biggest problem we face in hotels today is the lack of accommodation for staff. And that is because the rents are very expensive. I have considered installing modules for staff, even sacrificing hotel rooms, but you can’t mix the two operating units. It’s either tourist or residential. No matter how good a manager I am, I can’t solve this without a change in policy, and that’s up to the administration.
– It seems that only hoteliers suffer from this problem…
– I understand that if we claim this need, it will seem that we are selfish. Of course, this is happening throughout society and there are doctors and teachers who cannot afford to rent in Mallorca, Eivissa, Formentera… The administration pays very little, it is quite stingy, and that is a very serious problem. Despite the fact that hoteliers have a reputation for being exploitative, the Balearic Islands have the highest wage agreement in Spain.
– How would you describe the current state of the tourism sector in the Balearic Islands?
– We are already seeing higher tourist arrivals than ever before, higher returns. The pandemic has helped us to sharpen our wits, to buy better, to use our synergies more, to use technology. Artificial intelligence, for example, helps us to be much more efficient. And we have also changed the notion that in order to achieve a good result, hotels have to be full to capacity. In Mallorca we decided to take a risk and raise prices little by little, and it turns out that the market has absorbed them and we have the same occupancy.
– What factors and strategies do you consider key to achieving the deseasonalisation in Mallorca?
– The weather is getting better in winter and more tourists are likely to come. I know that this comment is very advantageous, but the greatest ally of deseasonalisation is climate change. It is an almost obligatory deseasonalisation. As far as strategies are concerned, we need to promote our villages, our gastronomy, our culture… All those things that make us a complete and attractive destination.
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