Mary Bernard, Sales and Marketing Manager, Maryborough House Hotel & Spa
Few can claim to have worked within the same establishment since it's inception and Mary Bernard, Sales and Marketing Manager at the Maryborough Hotel & Spa is one of the few people that can honestly say that they continue to enjoy a great sense of pride and loyalty in their work more than a decade on.

Mary first started at the hotel in 1997 and since that date has been instrumental in promoting the hotel's opening and continued success.

Today, her main responsibility is to oversee the revenue stream for the whole hotel including it's accommodation, meeting and food and beverage activities.

She also has to ensure that the hotel meets its targets and make sure that the Maryborough can ensure customer satisfaction and grow the bookings at the facility.

"The job spec is very varied really," she said adding, "and I suppose the main thing is to make sure that our client base, at worst, is maintained and at best, continues to grow."

Previous to taking on this position at the hotel, Mary spent three years at the Cathal Brugha St College of Catering, and had worked in France and at the Fitzpatrick Hotel Group where she "dipped" her toe into a number of management roles including food and beverage as well as conference management.

However, it was the role of Sales and Marketing Manager that really appealed to Mary and so when the opportunity arose to take on this varied role at one of Cork's most esteemed hotels, she jumped at the chance.

"I had done the long hours but, I wanted something more stable and liked the way there was continuity in sales and marketing in that it gave me the opportunity to build up and sustain relationships with customers," she said.

The decision paid off for Mary and in the past number of years she has joined the Maryborough Hotel & Spa in celebrating some of the top industry accolades including the 2002/03/04 Ireland's Best Award Winning Property, the IHF " Quality Employer" property and most recently the EFQM Excellence Award.

Looking to the future, Mary is very optimistic that the hotel will continue to attract business and recognition despite the current economic climate.

"The fact that we have established our reputation and that the brand is known will help us in these times," she said. Mary also believes that the hotel's commitment to excellence will help the property in these difficult times and highlighted that the hotel is actually currently investing significant funds to upgrade the hotel even further.

The hotel recently completed a A13 million revamp of the Maryborough Club along with a 25,000 square foot extension of 15 Spa bedrooms and luxurious spa, developed with ESPA.

It is currently undertaking a refurbishment project at its conference room facility and will be giving its bedrooms a cosmetic face lift in the new year.

"We are confident enough to reinvest in the hotel in the current climate and going forward we will be looking at growing the brand even further," she said.

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