La Villa de Mazamet reopens its doors on April 15th with two new faces at the helm. Meet Geoffrey and Janice.
Q: So, Geoffrey and Janice, tell us about yourselves!
A: Hi, I’m Geoffrey! I’m from Saint Germain les Corbeil, a small suburban city located 40 kms south of Paris (and a mouthful to pronounce!). While pursuing a Master’s degree in Bordeaux, I studied and interned in Japan and Canada. That’s how I got the travel bug! After another two years in Melbourne, I finally went back to Bordeaux where I thought I was going to stay put for a while… Until I met…
… Hi, Janice here, from Kuala Lumpur, the capital city of Malaysia. With my BCom in the bag, I went on to live and work in Singapore, New York City and ultimately Hong Kong. I then went to study pâtisserie at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris as a personal challenge. I fell in love with the city, France, and one of its citizens!
We moved in together, got married, and we soon realized that we loved hosting and welcoming family and friends into our home, whether it was in our tiny kitchen in Hong Kong, or on the rooftop of our Sydney flat. That’s why we decided to start a new chapter in life and venture into running a Bed & Breakfast business.
Q: And this new chapter starts in Mazamet. How did you end up here?
A: That’s right. Our move to Mazamet will see the culmination of a dream to own a chambres d’hôtes in France. But we didn’t really know where. And there, in the corner of our living room, our eyes chanced upon our favorite board game: Carcassonne. Eureka!
While scouting the Carcassonne area last summer, nothing felt just right… until we arrived in Mazamet. We were completely awestruck by the charm and quaintness of La Villa and the town itself. We pretty much decided on the spot that this is where we would carry on preparing good food and enjoying many a glass of wine, but this time with guests from all over the world. One year later, here we are!
Our camelias come in full bloom in March.Q: What a time to move and start a business!
A: Much like everyone else, our lives have been impacted by the pandemic. Janice almost didn’t make it to France, and our fur baby Chloé is unfortunately still stranded in Sydney, under the loving care of two good friends. However, we count our blessings as we, and our family and friends, are fortunate enough to be healthy. We sincerely hope that you and your loved ones are keeping safe and follow governmental guidelines so that this can all be soon behind us.
Q: What measures are you taking to deal with the current Covid19 situation?
La Villa is still set to reopen its doors to guests on April 15th with an offer compliant to governmental advice until the current lockdown is lifted: the common areas will be closed, and breakfast will be served in-room. We will also follow a very strict hygiene routine through daily sanitizing of the door handles, stairs handrails and common areas.
In the meantime, we have joined the French website www.enpremiereligne.fr to assist those in the front line, and we will soon launch “care packages” for medical staff who want to enjoy a well-deserved break once the crisis is over.
Q: What is going to change at La Villa?
A: Well, not much! We want to stay very humble. La Villa has been expertly managed by Peter and Mark for the last decade, and it would be very presumptuous of us to simply arrive and reinvent the wheel. We will endeavor to uphold the quality that thousands of guests have enjoyed and gotten used to over the years. To this end, will use the same process, the same suppliers, the same heavenly comfortable beds, and above all, the same sense of hospitality to maintain La Villa as one of the leading luxury B&Bs in France.
Now, the area where we will showcase a little bit more of our personality is the kitchen and bar… Stay tuned for the spring menu!
A sneak peek into our spring menu – Beetroot and goat’s cheese mousse topped with candied walnut.
Q: Any last words?
A: Yes! For those of you who have already stayed at La Villa, don’t forget our “Memories of Mazamet” contest to win a two-night stay in 2021!
We very much look forward to meeting you in person in the coming months, whether you have stayed at La Villa before or will be coming to stay for the first time. Cheers to a new season starting April 15th!
À bientôt!
Geoffrey & Janice