NATIONAL REPORT—Hospitality companies are making appointments and promotions across the country. Here’s a look at recent personnel shifts:
Park Hotels & Resorts Terminates Tanenbaum
Park Hotels & Resorts Inc. has terminated the employment of Robert D. Tanenbaum, Park’s former EVP, asset management.
His termination is unrelated to Park’s operational or financial performance. The company’s asset management department will report to Park’s CFO Sean Dell’Orto, on an interim basis until a successor is named.
Kuster Named Canyon Ranch CEO
Wellness lifestyle brand Canyon Ranch has named Jeff Kuster CEO.
Kuster joins Canyon Ranch with a track record of transformational leadership, brand building and assembling winning teams that drive results, the company reports. He brings more than 30 years of global experience, from the Peace Corps in West Africa and Doctors Without Borders in Romania, to leadership positions with McKinsey & Company and executive roles with fashion and lifestyle brands based in Europe. Most recently, he served as the group president of North America for Ralph Lauren Corporation.
GRP Capital Names President
GRP Capital’s board of directors has named Rick Patel as its president.
Patel is a founding partner of GRP Capital along with Greg Jeong, who is now serving in a senior advisory capacity. Patel also served as the chief credit officer for the GRP Capital Debt Fund. Patel is a leader in securing financing for a large number of entrepreneurs, both highly experienced ones and small business owners.
He has more than two decades of extensive community work in the hospitality and finance industries. He entered the commercial real estate space where he underwrote numerous high-profile transactions and acted as a senior consultant for a number of high net-worth individuals.
Virgin Hotels Makes Additions to Leadership Team
Virgin Hotels has added two new members to its corporate leadership team. Rick Colangelo is SVP of operations and Guy Lindsey is VP of construction.
In his new role, Colangelo assumes direct oversight responsibilities for Virgin Hotels’ existing and forthcoming properties, while working with the corporate leadership team on broader strategic initiatives. Prior to joining the Virgin Hotels family, he worked for Hyatt Hotels as SVP of field operations for the brand’s Two Roads Hospitality Lifestyle portfolio.
Ahead of Hyatt’s purchase of the portfolio, he served as EVP of operations, overseeing the sales, revenue, restaurants, bars and nightlife of Two Roads’ $500 million portfolio of 35 hotels and resorts, as well as its 15 properties in development. He was also pivotal to the integration of the two companies, establishing quality standards and new sales and revenue systems and enhancements, while continuing to add value to existing properties. Additional experience includes a 10-year tenure as VP of operations for Kimpton Hotels in the Northeast and Southeast.
Lindsey brings extensive experience with strategic lodging development and renovation projects in his new role, where he will support current efforts in the design area and streamline opening processes as the brand continues to grow.
In a career that has spanned more than 35 years, he has been involved in all phases of construction management, including hotels, residential, mixed-use and office building projects. He previously held the position of SVP of design and construction at Park Hotels and Resorts, where he developed and supervised the internal and external project management and engineering team. He also served as SVP of design and construction at Sunstone Hotel Investors Inc., where he worked on projects that include the Marriott Wailea and Hyatt Regency San Francisco.
CoralTree Taps Won as VP of Business Development
Joe Won has been hired as the VP of business development for the CoralTree Hospitality Group. Won brings nearly two decades of hotel investment, finance and business development experience to the CoralTree leadership team.
In its first year of operation, CoralTree closed five new business deals ranging from real estate projects to management contracts in the United States and Mexico. Won will lead the company’s efforts into the future looking for new opportunities to expand CoralTree’s growing collection of hotels and resort.
Most recently, Won oversaw hotel acquisitions, underwriting and portfolio management for CIM Group’s Hospitality Division with projects mainly in Atlanta, Los Angeles, New York and Oakland. However, his experience spans globally with more than $3 billion in real estate investments and restructuring with brands such as Atlantis, One & Only Resorts, Hilton, Marriott and IHG while at HFF and Kerzner. He’s worked in various investment analysis and finance positions over the years and started his career with Ernst & Young as a consultant in their hospitality real estate practice.
Caruso Appoints Posch
Caruso has appointed Philipp Posch as SVP of hospitality.
Posch will be responsible for the management and growth of the company’s hospitality portfolio including identifying new business opportunities within hotels and resorts.
Posch joins Caruso from Equinox Hotels where he held the role of general manager for the group’s Hudson Yards property. Prior to Equinox, He spent more than a decade with Trump Hotels. He later transitioned to Trump International Hotel & Tower in Vancouver.
Torres and Opp Join CREDE
Ted Torres and Steve Opp have joined CREDE (Commercial Real Estate Development Enterprises) as managing directors to expand the company’s breadth in hospitality and residential development.
Torres oversees new and existing hospitality development projects for the company, specializing in the front-end vision, brand engagement, operating partnerships, and entitlement approvals. He has overseen the development of more than 5,000 hotel rooms in all asset classes from economy to luxury in the U.S., Russia, Chile, Peru and the Caribbean.
Opp will focus on the development of urban infill, hospitality and residential mid- to high-rise projects, and master planned communities. In this capacity, he oversees new and existing projects, providing value and vision while acting as project executive of development. He previously managed the entitlement and development of thousands of hotel rooms and residential units across North America, with a special focus on mid- to high-rise city center developments. He has overseen projects that include industrial re-purposed assets to large scale residential/mixed-use master planned communities, for both foreign and domestic clients ranging from high net-worth individuals to Fortune Global 100 companies.
Cooper Hotels Promotes Execs
Hotel development and management company Cooper Hotels has promoted some of its executives.
Geoff Thompson has been promoted to VP of operations. He most recently served as both general manager of the Embassy Suites Detroit Metro Airport and regional director of development and operations.
Cooper Hotels Corporate Director of Food and Beverage Andy Laubscher was promoted to corporate director of operations. He began his career with Cooper Hotels in 1997.
Revenue management specialist Shannon Dilworth has been promoted to Cooper Hotels’ director of revenue management. Since joining the company in 2001, she has held positions in sales administration, sales management and revenue management.
Chef Becky Montoya was promoted to Cooper Hotels corporate training chef. A 15-year team member, she has been part of the Cooper Hotels food and beverage leadership team since 2008.
Kalcevic Joins JLL Valuation Advisory
Laura Kalcevic has joined JLL’s Valuation Advisory platform.
Kalcevic will be charged with providing valuations on hotel properties throughout the U.S. She brings more than 13 years of hotel valuation experience to JLL and previously worked for hotel valuation firm HVS and hotel market data provider STR.
JLL’s Valuation Advisory platform leverages the firm’s global experience and deep knowledge of local real estate markets to provide valuation, market analytics and advisory services to a wide range of clients.
