Continuing a Connecticut family history in the shipping industry dating back to 1816, Charles Mallory co-founded one of the nation’s leading shipping brokerage firms, MJLF, in 1979. In his 30 years with the Stamford, Connecticut-based company, he brokered the sale, purchase, and charter of some of the world’s largest tankers.
In 1999 Mallory fulfilled a life-long dream of being in the hotel and restaurant business when he founded the Greenwich Hospitality Group (GHG) which now owns and operates boutique hotels and restaurants in and outside of Connecticut. Comprised of seasoned hospitality professionals, GHG draws on a keen understanding of sophisticated standards of guest service and amenities combined with a distinctly customized approach to the hotel experience. Founder, Charles Mallory’s passion for historic preservation, art, and design set the course for the young hotel company, leading him to invest in hotels that in some cases he “brought back to life” through creatively reinventing and repositioning. The first brand Mallory created, Delamar Hotels, is currently building the third location, a ground up project, opening in West Hartford, with the first two thriving in Greenwich and Southport CT. Occasionally projects have been built from the ground up with qualified local construction partners, such as the Hotel Zero Degrees (Norwalk and Danbury) in partnership with RMS Construction. In all cases, Greenwich Hospitality Group’s hotels possess dynamic interiors, often personally owned artwork, and thoughtful visible touches that create a truly distinct and elevated hotel environment.
Mallory’s dedication to aesthetic excellence extends to the hotels’ dining offerings as well. Many of the hotels have exceptional dining establishments, driving them to become the local gathering spot as well as a truly luxurious amenity for hotel guests. Delamar hotel restaurants have both earned the top rating from the New York Times and the new restaurants opened at both the Hotel Zero Degrees in Norwalk and Danbury, Connecticut and the Holland and Maverick Hotels in Alpine, Texas were hotly anticipated and led by well known chefs in the region.
A new partnership with David and Ana Schreiber in the Hotel Limpia and Blue Mountain Bistro in Fort Davis, Texas was added to GHG’s Texas portfolio in January 2017, further demonstrating Mallory’s commitment to historical hotel properties.
In 2015, Mallory brought the iconic Four Columns, in Newfane VT back to life after it had closed two years prior. When it first opened in 1965 it was the first true farm to table restaurant and luminaries such as Mick Jagger, Sting, and Michael Douglas were counted among guests over the years. After a complete remodeling, that maintained the historic integrity of the Inn, and the addition of a state of the art kitchen, and original artwork throughout, the Inn reopened once again to rave reviews which Mallory shares, is one of his favorite “brought back to life stories”.
Greenwich Hospitality Group extends its attention to detail to its guest services, with highly trained staff and seasoned managers empowered to exceed guest expectations with thoughtful, personalized care. The hotels, whether in Greenwich, Connecticut, Vermont or Texas, are hosts to signature community and corporate events, drawing the attention of both Hollywood and European royalty, captains of industry, and United States politicians. Each of the hotels has been #1 in its market on TripAdvisor, the gold standard for assessing customer satisfaction. In addition, the hotels consistently outpace competitors in both occupancy and rate, while also having a tight control on expenses and understanding of operational efficiencies. In addition, Greenwich Hospitality Group defines itself through the ability to add value to every guest’s stay—whether corporate, family, wedding, or leisure guests. Guests will often receive complimentary breakfast, wifi, shuttle, and bikes to ride, parking, and concierge services among other cost-free additions that are provided to enhance their experience and encourage their loyalty. This model has been highly successful, allowing the company to grow quickly over the last seven years, while other hotel companies were facing hardships and diminished returns during that same period.
With three hotels currently under construction, the third being the historic Goodwin in Hartford, scheduled to open April 2017, which Mallory is designing to appeal to millennials to add more vitality to the Hartford area, there is no sign of slowing down. In fact, the serial entrepreneur has other innovative ideas that incorporate his eclectic passions to enhance the customer’s enjoyment of the portfolio properties in the works.
Mallory serves on the boards of the Mystic Seaport Museum, America’s premier maritime museum, the Shelburne Museum, and the William Pitt Foundation.
Random fun fact about Charles Mallory…While he was in college he was on the TV show The Dating Game and won.
