· Conrad
Nicholson Hilton was born on December 25, 1887 in San Antonio, New Mexico. His
father, Augustus Halvorsen Hilton, was an immigrant from Norway while his
mother, Mary Genevieve was an American
citizen of German descent. The couple had eight children, out of which Conrad
was born second.
· When he turned
21, he joined his father’s general store on profit sharing basis but soon was
frustrated by the lack of freedom. Therefore, he began to look for some other
career opportunity and joined politics.
· When the state
of New Mexico was created in 1912, he was elected to its Legislature Assembly
on the Republican ticket. He served the assembly for two terms but the
governmental red tape as well as underhand deals soon frustrated him.
· After expiry
of his terms Conrad returned to San Antonio and raised enough money to start a
bank. When in 1917, the United States of America joined the First World War,
Conrad sold off his bank to join the war.
· For two years
Conrad served in the Quartermaster Corps in France and on being discharged in
1919, he went back to San Antonio. His father had died by that time and he had
to take charge of his father's businesses, which was not really doing well.
· Moreover,
having seen the world, Conrad was not interested in living in a small town like
San Antonio. Therefore, he started looking for some alternative. An old friend
advised him to go to Texas, where the oil boom had already started.
Career:
· In 1919,
Conrad Hilton set out for Wichita, where he tried to buy a bank and backed out
when the seller raised the price at the last moment. Instead, he bought ‘Mobley
Hotel’ in Cisco, Texas. It had 40 rooms and in spite of that he had to build
additional rooms to cope with the demand.
· From the
beginning he believed in two principles. The first was ‘digging for gold’,
which meant prudent use of space. For example, he noticed that the guests
preferred to dine out and the hotel made very little money on food. Therefore,
he converted the restaurant into additional guest rooms, which were in short
supply.
· His second
principle was ‘esprit de corps’. It involved motivating the staff to provide
excellent service and this he did by giving them credit when the guests were
pleased with their stay at the hotel.
· Moreover, he
opened small shop windows in the lobby, which kept a variety of items such as
newspapers, magazines, razors, toothbrushes, toothpastes etc. They not only
earned additional revenue, but also helped to attract more guests. Very soon,
‘Hotel Mobley’ turned out to be a huge success.
· Within one
year, Hilton recouped the money he had invested in it. Subsequently, he bought
the ‘Melba Hotel’ in Fort Worth and the ‘Waldorf’ in Dallas. Both these hotels
were in bad condition, but after renovation they looked so magnificent that he
began to call them ‘dowagers’.
· In 1924,
Hilton decided to build his own hotel, ‘Dallas Hilton’ which was opened to the
public the following year. It was not only the first hotel that he built, but
it was also the first hotel with the name ‘Hilton’ attached to it. However, not
wanting to tie up his money, he took the land on lease for 99 years, a concept
that was still new in Texas.
· Thereafter, he
built the ‘Abilene Hilton’ in 1927; ‘Waco Hilton’ in 1928; and ‘El Paso Hilton’
in 1930. Unfortunately, the Great Depression set in just then and had a very
negative effect on hotel industry. At one point, Hilton was almost forced into
bankruptcy, having a debt of $500,000.
· Soon he was
forced to give up many of his properties and start working as a manager in a
combined hotel chain. During this bad period, he remembered his mother telling
him that the prayer was the best investment he could make and indeed, it helped
him a lot.
· As the
depression came to an end, Hilton was back into his hotel business. He not only
bought back his old properties, but in 1939 he also built ‘Hotel Andaluz’ in
Albuquerque, New Mexico. It was his first hotel outside Texas.
· Later he moved
westward to buy ‘Breakers’ in Los Angeles and ‘Sir Francis Drake’ in San
Francisco. In 1942, he shifted his headquarters to Los Angeles and from there
he began to expand eastwards.
· In 1943, he
bought the ‘Roosevelt Hotel’ in New York City. Next in 1945, he acquired
Chicago's ‘Palmer House’ and the ‘Stevens Hotel’, which was till then the
largest hotel in the world, and after renovating it he renamed it ‘Conrad
Hilton’.
· Although it
was very large, Hilton continued using his ‘digging for gold’ policy. He added
an entire floor by dividing a ballroom horizontally and building it halfway
between the original floor and the high ceiling.
· So far, all
his hotels were operated independently. In 1946, he formed ‘Hilton Hotel
Corporation’ and had it listed under the New York Stock Exchange the following
year. Hilton, with his $9 million worth of stock, was the largest shareholder.
· Next in 1949,
Hilton obtained ‘Hotel Caribe Hilton’ in San Juan, Puerto Rico on a 20-year
lease. This was the group’s first hotel outside the United States and with it
was born ‘Hilton International Company’, which became the first international
hotel chain.
· In October
1949 he fulfilled one of his long-cherished dreams and acquired the management
rights of the prestigious ‘Waldorf-Astoria Hotel’ in New York City. The Hilton
Hotels Corporation finally bought the hotel outright in 1972.
· So far,
Statler Hotels was his main competitor. In 1954, he purchased the company for a
record price of $111,000,000. The move was possible because Hilton had earlier
enlisted his company under New York Stock Exchange and so he was able to obtain
additional capital from outside investors.
· Throughout the
1950s and 1960s, he kept on acquiring hotels both at home and abroad. Besides,
he also acquired interest in other enterprises such as Carte Blanche Credit
Company and American Crystal Sugar Company. However, they were not as
successful as his hotel ventures.
· In 1966, he
gave up the active management of the company, naming his son Barron the
President. However, he remained Chairman of the Board until his death almost 13
years later.
Major
Works:
· The first
major hotel that Conrad Hilton built was ‘Dallas Hilton’. For the site, he
chose the highest point in downtown Dallas. The building consisted of 14
storeys and the hotel offered all kinds of services. Built at a cost
of$1,360,000, the hotel was officially opened on August 6, 1925.
· Among the
other major hotels later acquired by Hilton were the Mayflower Hotel in
Washington DC, the Palmer House in Chicago, and the Plaza Hotel and
Waldorf-Astoria in New York City.
· He is also
known for his book, ‘Be My Guest’. Published in 1957, the book is still
considered a sort of Bible to all hoteliers.
Personal
Life & Legacy
· In 1925,
Conrad Hilton married Mary Adelaide Barron. The couple had three children;
Conrad Nicholson Hilton Jr., William Barron Hilton, and Eric Michael Hilton.
Later in 1934, when trouble broke out between the couple, he granted her a
divorce going against his will and teachings of the Roman Catholic Church.
· In 1942,
Hilton married Hungarian actress ZsaZsa Gabor in a civil ceremony. The marriage
was a disaster from the beginning and ended in a divorce in 1946. They had one
daughter Constance Francesca Hilton.
· In 1976,
Hilton married Mary Frances Kelly. This marriage happened in a church. Their
union lasted until his death in 1979.
· Hilton died from natural causes on January 3, 1979, at the age of 91. He was interred at Calvary Hill Cemetery, a Catholic cemetery in Dallas, Texas.
· The Conrad N.
Hilton Foundation, the trust he founded continues his legacy.
Inspirational Quotes of Cornad Hilton :
I learned that you don’t get anywhere by sitting
comfortably in a chair.
You had to dream!
When you start planting acorns, the full-fledged oak may take years. And I was beginning to learn what all gardeners must know – patience.
To see a seed flower, it has to be planted.
It seemed to me they were so close to the present picture they couldn’t see a future.
It always started with a dream.
I wanted the largest hotel in the world.
I learned at twenty-one how a man feels when he has been given a job but complete confidence has been withheld. It couldn’t work.
[On fitting more beds and revenue streams into a hotel] The trick in packing a box is to pack a full box. This had nothing to do with crushing or crowding, only the intelligent use of what is available.
Soap, water and elbow grease; those are the three ingredients for success in the hotel business.
If you climb Mount Everest, no matter how carefully you plan, anything can happen. Your ice axe slips, your oxygen gives out. A concealed crevasse swallows you up. Well, that’s about the way it was building my first Hilton Hotel.
[On investing his own money first] I have never once in my life asked anyone to follow me financially into an adventure when I was not willing to take the lead.
Worrying has never solved anything yet. Prayer, thought, action – yes. Just worrying, no!
Enthusiasm is the vital element toward the individual success of every man or woman.
I admit that I delight in the company of frank and honest men. I have an instinctive horror for dishonesty. I cannot conceive of rejoicing for an instant from having earned a single dollar from cupidity or trickery.
It is impossible for a man to live without having some preconceived idea of where his life is going. As far back as I can remember, I was marked with the sign of enthusiasm. With enthusiasm to propel me, and prayer to shield me, I can say that I like what I’ve done with my life. Inevitably, with such attributes, it is difficult not to lead a full, active, happy life. Give a man the ambition to spur him on, the faith to guide him, and the good health to allow him to fulfill his potential, and he will, in one form or another, achieve success.
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