The last big project I contributed to in 2009 was both a pleasure and a privilege. Not only did I get to work with humbly hip agency Cloudraker, but I also got a sneak peak into arguably one of the next decade’s most groundbreaking tourism/resort development: Le Massif de Charlevoix.
The brainchild of Cirque du Soleil [...]

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Well, it’s been a minute since my last post (3 months!). My neglect was largely due to a dusting of work that quickly grew into a blizzard, leaving me grasping at half-eaten weekends by the lake and a grand total of five swims (although one can at least be categorized as epic).
One of the most [...]

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The windows are framed in black tile, there’s a rabbit on the stove, bresaola in the cooler and a rack of patés that inspire drooling even at 10 am. Free-range white Cornish hens, Strasbourg terrine, pork and duck rillettes are the specials on a chalkboard. The windowpanes are adorned with depictions of pigs in various [...]

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It’s funny. When I first conducted this study of the new upper class and why they found the world of Intrawest resorts so appealing, the network was at its peak. That was 2004, before Intrawest founders sold the company to Fortress (August 11, 2006) and laughed all the way to the bank. The last chapter [...]

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“Hamlet” is an heirloom word, given to the English by the French. A diminutive for hamel, meaning “little village,” a true hamelet is in fact much smaller than any village. In some instances, it can be as small as a nine-hole golf course.
At a time when most real estate developments are on hold, precarious or [...]

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“Orléans, Beaugency, Notre-Dame de Paris, Vendôme, Vendôme.”

Naming – whether a product, property or entire community – can be one of the hardest parts of the job and the strongest argument for a compelling story. For this contemporary residential building located across from Notre Dame Basilica in one of Old Montreal’s most well-preserved corners, the story [...]

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In June, 2008, I was asked to tell the story of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel’s centennial transformation and expansion into the world of prime, luxury real estate. As one would expect, there were enough tales about the original Ritz-Carlton and its patrons to keep a gaggle of cocktail party guests entertained for days. Liberace, Sophia Loren, [...]

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