A familiar face has been appointed to lead the Kempinski Hotel San Lawrenz. Effective immediately, Sven Fritzsche takes over the role of general manager at the hotel where he returns after an eight-year absence.

The 37-year-old German, who has been working for Kempinski Hotels since 1999, had already spent two years in Gozo, initially as Front Desk Manager, then as Front Office Manager.

This is Mr Fritzsche’s second managerial position. At the age of 35 he became the general manager at the Kempinski Hotel Khan Palace Ulanbaatar, Mongolia, a position he held till the end of 2011. Now Mr Fritzsche has taken over the management of the Kempinski Hotel San Lawrenz in Gozo from Noel Attard, who has been appointed general manager in Lithuania and will lead the opening of the Kempinski Hotel Cathedral Square in Vilnuis, which is planned for this summer.

Mr Fritzsche started his hotel career with a classic apprenticeship in 1992 in the Hotel Hänslehof in Bad Dürrheim, Germany. After completing training and community service, he moved to the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida, USA. After almost two years in the States, he signed up as Front Office Agent in the Kempinski Hotel Bristol in Berlin – and his career with Kempinski Hotels began: Gozo, St Moritz, the opening of the Kempinski Hotel Wuxi in China as Director of Rooms and later as Executive Assistant Manager where he was stationed before he was appointed to his position in Mongolia in the summer of 2009.

Mr Fritzsche commented: “When the opportunity was offered to return to the Gozo property as general manager, I did not hesitate even for one second as the charm and beauty of the island were still very lively in my memories. It is great to return to this little hideaway island and rediscover all its treasures. It is great to see how the hotel has evolved in the last eight years and even more exciting that I am able to breathe life into the new attractions of the property such as the ‘La Caverna’ wine bar and the extension of the award winning spa.”

Concurrent with his duties in the hotels, Mr Fritzsche participated in the Global Manager Programme of Kempinski and gained the Certificate of Business Administration from the renowned Reims School of Management.