Les Ilets de la Plage was built in 1990 by the Ledees – a prominent St Barths family – and for many years was run as a family business.
In 2003, the family leased the property to hoteliers and business partners David Henderson and Laurie Smith, who began managing the resort. All sorts of improvements have been made since, but the original Ledee family concept remains the same – to keep Les Ilets as low-key and as relaxing a place as it can possibly be, far removed from the traditional glitzy glamour of St. Barths.
Arriving on the island from his native Scotland in 1982, David soon fell in love with the place. Stints managing the famous nightclub Autour du Rocher in Lorient and the Hibiscus Hotel in Gustavia followed, before he became Assistant General Manager at Le Toiny in 1994, rising to General Manager in 1997 where he remained until becoming involved with Les Ilets.
Laurie first arrived on St Barths in 1988 and spent two years at Le Guanahani before returning to Paris to work for Hotel Montalembert. Moving on to manage Le Chateau de Noirieux in the Loire Valley, she remained an island girl at heart and returned to St Barths in 1994 as General Manager of Le Toiny where she worked alongside David. Three years later, she became manager of 22 Jermyn Street – a boutique London hotel – until it closed for redevelopment in 2010.
Along the way, Laurie and David had become firm friends and business partners. Laurie lives in the UK with her two children, Oliver and Clementine, and her husband Craig – who she married on the island in 2006 with David, his partner Laurent, and the two children as witnesses!
