There’s something magical about visiting a hotel in another country. No one knows that better than Kirsten Kost, winner of the Black Press Rising Star Award which honours young women making their mark.
Kost has built an exciting, 15-year career in the hospitality industry, working in hotels around the world.
“It’s just nice to be a part of people’s memories and to know whether the person is on a family vacation or they’re a corporate traveller, or they’re here for a large group convention,” says Kost, the vice president of sales and marketing with Mairet Hotels, a Canadian hospitality management company with properties in Victoria and Edmonton.
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| Kirsten Kost, VP Sales and Marketing, Mairet Hotels, photographed at the Hotel Rialto. (Don Denton/Black Press) |
“To identify the reason why the person has come to the hotel and deliver an enhanced experience, I find that pretty special. There’s not many jobs where you get to have that impact in people’s lives every day.”
Growing up, Kost remembers travelling the world with her American mother and Canadian father and three siblings, visiting places such as India, Europe and Eastern Canada.
While exploring different cities, Kost always felt at home when she returned to the comfort of her hotel.
In post-secondary school, Kost studied journalism and continued to work in hotels in Victoria, Australia and London, before she eventually decided to change career paths. She then earned her masters in international hotel and restaurant management from the London Metropolitan University in central London.
And she hasn’t looked back since.
Now, Kost helps manage Mairet Hotels’ properties including three in Victoria — the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel and Suites Victoria, the Hotel Rialto and Solo Suites in Langford.
“I found my niche in hospitality that I really enjoy,” she says.
