Chieko Aoki
Chieko Aoki is the founder and president of Blue Tree Hotels. She holds a law degree from the University of São Paulo (USP), took courses in Japanese culture and art at Sofia University in Tokyo, and studied hospitality at Cornell University in the United States. She worked in various parts of the world including the United States, Asia, and Europe, serving as president of the Caesar Park chain and as vice chairman of Westin, one of the most traditional hotel chains in the United States.
Building an Empire vs. Carrying a Legacy: How to Unite Experience and Innovation in Leadership
Founding is facing the void with a vision. Inheriting is balancing the weight of a history with the urgency to reinvent it. Different paths, but with a common challenge: building something that lasts. In this panel, two distinct trajectories meet to explore what separates — and what unites — those who built a business from scratch and those who took on a family legacy with the responsibility to preserve without rigidity. The debate reveals how tradition and innovation can coexist, why accumulated experience is a strategic asset, and how each generation of leadership needs to find its own way of leaving a mark.