A Bermudian hotel worker who eschewed a career in law in favour of hospitality work has landed a top job at one of New York City’s new luxury hotels.

“I was astonished,” said Richard Tucker, 24, speaking of his appointment to front desk manager at the WestHouse in midtown Manhattan.

“A young man from the small island of Bermuda getting an interview at a new five-star hotel, to spearhead the development of the front office? I was speechless.”

Mr Tucker started out ten years ago as a beach attendant for Tucker’s Point, inspired by the uncompromising work ethic of his grandfather Richard Warner — plus father Morris Tucker’s background as a maître d.

“What I enjoy most about hospitality is the service element,” he said.

“Knowing that you have the ability to effect change in someone’s day. Something as little as remembering a guest’s name goes a long way in leaving a lasting impression.”

At 16, Mr Tucker took a humble job in the coffee shop of the Fairmont Hamilton Princess, where he worked part-time for more than two years.

Graduating from Saltus in 2008, he was able to talk his way to a front desk role, explaining: “I had always loved the idea of wearing Bermuda shorts to work, which to me was the ultimate status symbol of making it in the Bermuda hospitality industry.”

Taking a year off from hotel work, Mr Tucker went to the UK’s Oxford Brookes University to study law.

But his love for the hospitality work drew him back to the Hamilton Princess where he rose through the ranks before joining Rosewood Tucker’s Point in 2011 where he became assistant front desk manager.

“The best part of my experience at Rosewood Tucker’s Point was developing a culture of luxury service,” he said.

“What stuck with me the most is the difference between luxury and ordinary is the ability to anticipate the guest’s needs.”

Undeterred by the challenges presented by diving into New York’s saturated hospitality industry, Mr Tucker won over management at the Smyth Tribeca, run by Thompson Hotels.

His performance there ensured that a former manager invited him to interview at the WestHouse.

Getting taken on as the front desk manager and reporting directly to the general manager, just five months after as assistant managerial role, was “inconceivable”, he said.

Now in charge of the front desk in a new hotel close to many of Manhattan’s major attractions, Mr Tucker nonetheless hopes to return home eventually.

“Bermuda is home for me and always will be,” he said.

“If I could offer one bit of advice to local hoteliers, it would be to not limit the abilities and growth of other Bermudians based on their age.

“I was afforded great opportunities because mentors recognised talent above age. There are many other young Bermudians who are just as talented as I am, and they should be extended the same courtesies to develop their careers.

“It is most unfortunate when Bermudians have to leave home to pursue greater opportunities.

“We must learn to retain our talent, as no one in the world is more hospitable than a Bermudian.”

Asked if he’d ever return to the legal profession, Mr Tucker said: “I would not rule out law in the future as it is certainly something I am still very passionate about. My greater aspiration is to, at some point, get involved in local politics and continue in the footsteps of my great grandfather Dr EF Gordon and great aunts Patricia Pamplin-Gordon and Dame Pamela Gordon Banks.”