Twenty-five-year hotel veteran Bruno Cristol has been named General Manager of the recently rebranded Traders Hotel, Brisbane. The hotel was rebranded on 7 August 2012, and is now owned and managed by Hong Kong-based luxury hotel group Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts.

The 191-room property, which is centrally located above the Brisbane Transit Centre and next to Roma Street Parklands, is the first Traders hotel operated by Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts in Australia. It marks the hotel group’s third venture in the continent, following the group’s recent acquisition of the 563-room landmark Shangri-La Hotel, Sydney and its majority stake in Shangri-La Hotel, The Marina, Cairns.

Mr. Cristol, a French-Australian national, has worked with the Shangri-La group for more than a decade. His wealth of knowledge and experience includes opening new hotels and restaurants in Asia and Australia. Mr. Cristol first joined Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts in 2001, as the Director of Food and Beverage at Kowloon Shangri-La, Hong Kong. Then in 2005, he moved to Australia to become the Resident Manager of Shangri-La Hotel, Sydney. He was actively involved in the renovation and rebranding of the hotel, which led to Shangri‑La Hotel, Sydney receiving the “Best Luxury Accommodation” category award of the New South Wales Tourism Awards and being name the “Best Deluxe Hotel of the Year 2006” by the Australian Hotels Association (AHA).

After two years in Sydney, Mr. Cristol took the helm as General Manager of Shangri-La Hotel, The Marina, Cairns, then as the General Manager of the Golden Sands Resort, Penang. The Golden Sands Resort subsequently bagged “The Best Four-star Resort in Malaysia in 2011” voted by the Ministry of Tourism Malaysia and for two consecutive years was named “Best Family Resort in Malaysia” by Expat Life Magazine and Holidays with Kids, Australia  

Prior to joining Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts, Mr. Cristol held Director of Food and Beverage positions at Hyatt and InterContinental Hotels in France and Australia, following a year’s work on a liner cruising around the Caribbean Islands for a year. He began his hotel career as a trainee chef at the Michelin two-star restaurant Le Relais in Biarritz, France, after graduating from the Hotel Management School in Bordeaux.

Hong Kong-based Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts currently owns and/or manages 73 hotels under the Shangri-La, Kerry and Traders brands, with a room inventory of over 30,000.  Traders hotels cater to today’s savvy and passionate traveller with brilliant simplicity and warm sincerity. They provide a friendly yet professional environment designed to complement guests at work, rest or play. Based in major business centres in Asia and the Middle East, Traders Hotels are the practical choice for business and leisure travellers.

Traders Hotels are located in Abu Dhabi, Beijing, Changzhou, Dubai, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Male, Manila, Penang, Shenyang, Singapore, Yangon and Brisbane, with scheduled openings in Chennai, Doha and Iskandar. The group has a substantial development pipeline with upcoming projects in Canada, mainland China, India, Malaysia, Mongolia, Philippines, Qatar, Sri Lanka, Turkey and United Kingdom.