The Drive to Keep Raising The Bar
Food on the Edge 2026: Bringing The Global Food Conversation to Our Shores
October 9, 2026
For Claire Xuereb, AX Group's Director of
Hospitality and Care, success was never about
opening another hotel but about spotting
a gap the market hadn't filled and building
something with a reason to exist.
Words by
Stephen Gauci.
Long before Claire Xuereb became one of Malta’s most recognised hospitality and business leaders, she was fascinated by what happened behind the scenes of a hotel: the arrivals, the interactions, the operation, and, above all, the challenge of making people feel looked after.
It was not an obvious career choice. Growing up around the family business, Claire was initially exposed to construction rather than hospitality. But when her father moved into hotels, something clicked. While her friends spent their summers at the beach, she preferred to be behind reception, welcoming guests, speaking to them, and observing what made them happy while keeping a keen eye on what could have been better.
“The more I became involved, the more I realised how much I enjoyed the combination of people, detail, problem-solving and the constant opportunity to improve an experience," she reflects.
That early experience would become a lifelong passion. Decades on, what keeps her motivated isn't the prospect of opening another hotel but finding a gap the market hasn't yet filled. "The objective is not simply to launch another hotel, restaurant or concept," she explains.
"It is to introduce something that raises the bar, has a clear reason to exist and contributes something new to the industry." There's real satisfaction, she says, in building something from nothing by taking an idea, shaping a concept and brand around it, and watching it become something customers recognise and respond to.
That philosophy has shaped AX Group’s increasingly diverse hospitality portfolio, where individual properties are given their own identity rather than being variations of the same formula.
AX ODYCY in Qawra, Rosselli – AX Privilege in Valletta and Verdala Wellness Hotel – AX Privilege in Rabat are very different hotels because they respond to different locations, markets and customer expectations. “I have always believed that hotels need personalities of their own,” she says. “Malta is a small market, which makes differentiation even more important. We cannot afford a copy-paste approach.” Every new business should contribute something meaningful to Malta’s existing tourism and hospitality offer.
Claire Xuereb
Putting people at the centre
Hospitality, she says, is very simple at its core: people want to feel that somebody is taking care of them. The same principle applies to employees. When developing a new business, the thinking cannot stop with the physical operation or customer proposition.
The organisational structure behind it matters just as much: how it operates today, how it scales, and how the people within it grow alongside it. She takes particular satisfaction in seeing people who joined in relatively junior positions progress into significant leadership roles.
Asked what shaped her as a leader, she points first to an unwillingness to stay within her comfort zone. "I have always pushed myself towards new territory, new challenges and different ways of doing things," she says, a mindset inherited from her father and the belief that almost anything is possible if you believe strongly enough in what you are trying to achieve.
A changing hospitality landscape
Claire believes the industry's operating model will have to evolve over the next five to ten years. Labour constraints, higher operating costs, sustainability expectations and guests demanding greater personalisation are already forcing businesses to reconsider traditional structures.
"You cannot simply operate tomorrow's hotel using yesterday's structure." Malta already faces an imbalance between the demand for labour and the availability of people, pushing businesses to examine everything from restaurant formats to where human interaction genuinely adds value.
Technology, particularly artificial intelligence, will inevitably play a role. Claire sees potential in forecasting, purchasing, analysing guest behaviour, scheduling and administrative processes. But there is a clear boundary.
AI can remember that a guest prefers a particular room, but it cannot replicate human intuition, the employee who notices something is wrong without being told or understands when to engage and when to give a guest space. "I would use technology to make the operation smarter," she says. "I would not use it to remove the part of hospitality that makes people feel recognised and cared for."
A Wellness Proposition
Wellness is another development shaping hospitality, though Claire believes the sector needs to move beyond simply adding a spa and adopting the language of wellness. Consumers are increasingly able to distinguish a genuine wellness proposition from a superficial one.
This is one reason Verdala Wellness Hotel is particularly close to her. Launched last year, the property has already won the Responsible Tourism Development Award for Best Accommodation under 75 bedrooms at Malta's Tourism Awards.
It introduced AX Group to an entirely new segment, giving guests the chance to disconnect and find balance. "Verdala was created specifically around that need," she explains. The experience is now shaping how AX Group approaches wellness across its wider portfolio, including the refurbishment of AX The Palace and the next phase of AX ODYCY.
Hospitality, she says, is very simple at its core: people want to feel that somebody is taking care of them. The same principle applies to employees. When developing a new business, the thinking cannot stop with the physical operation or customer proposition.
The organisational structure behind it matters just as much: how it operates today, how it scales, and how the people within it grow alongside it. She takes particular satisfaction in seeing people who joined in relatively junior positions progress into significant leadership roles.
Asked what shaped her as a leader, she points first to an unwillingness to stay within her comfort zone. "I have always pushed myself towards new territory, new challenges and different ways of doing things," she says, a mindset inherited from her father and the belief that almost anything is possible if you believe strongly enough in what you are trying to achieve.
A changing hospitality landscape
Claire believes the industry's operating model will have to evolve over the next five to ten years. Labour constraints, higher operating costs, sustainability expectations and guests demanding greater personalisation are already forcing businesses to reconsider traditional structures.
"You cannot simply operate tomorrow's hotel using yesterday's structure." Malta already faces an imbalance between the demand for labour and the availability of people, pushing businesses to examine everything from restaurant formats to where human interaction genuinely adds value.
Technology, particularly artificial intelligence, will inevitably play a role. Claire sees potential in forecasting, purchasing, analysing guest behaviour, scheduling and administrative processes. But there is a clear boundary.
AI can remember that a guest prefers a particular room, but it cannot replicate human intuition, the employee who notices something is wrong without being told or understands when to engage and when to give a guest space. "I would use technology to make the operation smarter," she says. "I would not use it to remove the part of hospitality that makes people feel recognised and cared for."
A Wellness Proposition
Wellness is another development shaping hospitality, though Claire believes the sector needs to move beyond simply adding a spa and adopting the language of wellness. Consumers are increasingly able to distinguish a genuine wellness proposition from a superficial one.
This is one reason Verdala Wellness Hotel is particularly close to her. Launched last year, the property has already won the Responsible Tourism Development Award for Best Accommodation under 75 bedrooms at Malta's Tourism Awards.
It introduced AX Group to an entirely new segment, giving guests the chance to disconnect and find balance. "Verdala was created specifically around that need," she explains. The experience is now shaping how AX Group approaches wellness across its wider portfolio, including the refurbishment of AX The Palace and the next phase of AX ODYCY.
What is Quality?
Claire's view of Malta's tourism future favours value over volume. Visitor numbers tell us something, she argues, but nowhere near enough. The more important questions concern who these visitors are, why they chose Malta, how they spend and whether they return. Expenditure, length of stay, repeat visitation and the quality of employment generated are far more meaningful indicators.
She also rejects the idea that quality tourism automatically means luxury tourism. "What matters is the quality delivered within each segment and the value that segment contributes to Malta's overall tourism product. Quality does not mean five star tourism." A three star hotel, she says, can play an equally valid role if it delivers an excellent three star experience.
Protecting Malta’s character
For Claire, labour shortages, infrastructure, rising costs, sustainability and service quality are all interconnected. Malta has reached capacity in a number of areas, meaning the country must become more selective about the tourism development it encourages, directing investment towards genuine gaps rather than adding to what already exists. Underlying everything is Malta's authenticity, its history, architecture, food and way of life. "Our authenticity is one of our strongest assets. We should treat it that way."
Building the next generation
For young people entering hospitality, Claire's advice is straightforward: go for it. Resilience matters, but so do creativity, independent thinking and the confidence to stand behind bold decisions. She cautions against rushing towards management without first understanding the operation, and stresses the value of a strong support system for those combining a career with family life. "You are building your own foundations, and later you will reap the benefit of that work."
Ultimately, Claire does not want her legacy measured by the number of hotels built. "I would hope they say I added value. Not simply that we built more hotels or grew the business, but that we introduced concepts that moved Malta's hospitality offer forward in some way." It is a fitting note for a career that began behind a reception desk and still asks the same question today: what is missing, and how can the experience be made better?
Claire's view of Malta's tourism future favours value over volume. Visitor numbers tell us something, she argues, but nowhere near enough. The more important questions concern who these visitors are, why they chose Malta, how they spend and whether they return. Expenditure, length of stay, repeat visitation and the quality of employment generated are far more meaningful indicators.
She also rejects the idea that quality tourism automatically means luxury tourism. "What matters is the quality delivered within each segment and the value that segment contributes to Malta's overall tourism product. Quality does not mean five star tourism." A three star hotel, she says, can play an equally valid role if it delivers an excellent three star experience.
Protecting Malta’s character
For Claire, labour shortages, infrastructure, rising costs, sustainability and service quality are all interconnected. Malta has reached capacity in a number of areas, meaning the country must become more selective about the tourism development it encourages, directing investment towards genuine gaps rather than adding to what already exists. Underlying everything is Malta's authenticity, its history, architecture, food and way of life. "Our authenticity is one of our strongest assets. We should treat it that way."
Building the next generation
For young people entering hospitality, Claire's advice is straightforward: go for it. Resilience matters, but so do creativity, independent thinking and the confidence to stand behind bold decisions. She cautions against rushing towards management without first understanding the operation, and stresses the value of a strong support system for those combining a career with family life. "You are building your own foundations, and later you will reap the benefit of that work."
Ultimately, Claire does not want her legacy measured by the number of hotels built. "I would hope they say I added value. Not simply that we built more hotels or grew the business, but that we introduced concepts that moved Malta's hospitality offer forward in some way." It is a fitting note for a career that began behind a reception desk and still asks the same question today: what is missing, and how can the experience be made better?
