Accor appointed Marc Dardenne chief operating officer, luxury brands, Europe. Dardenne, who has nearly four decades of global hospitality experience in both hotel and real estate groups, most recently was chief operating officer of Amaala, an ultra-luxury Saudi Arabian resort destination project on the Red Sea, and former interim CEO and COO at Jumeirah Hotels & Resorts in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
In his new role, he will oversee operations of around 50 luxury hotels in Europe and nine properties under development, including brands such as Raffles, Fairmont, So, Sofitel and others, as well as flagship properties such as Raffles Europejski Warsaw in Warsaw, Poland; Sofitel Legend The Grand Amsterdam in Amsterdam; and The Savoy, A Fairmont Managed Hotel in London.
Accor also named Karelle Lamouche chief commercial officer for Europe, a newly created role in which Lamouche will lead Accor’s European commercial team while driving the business revenue strategy for the company and its partners across European markets. She also is tasked with creating a more holistic and customer-centric approach while delivering strategy for Accor brands throughout Europe. Central to her role will be the launch of All, Accor’s new loyalty program, which debuts later this year.
Lamouche has been with Accor since 2003, most recently as senior vice president for sales and marketing, distribution and revenue management across all its brands in Northern Europe. Prior to that, she was senior vice president for economy and budget hotels in the United Kingdom, with responsibility for operations and marketing across Ibis brands.
Vincent Billiard is general manager of The St. Regis Singapore. Billiard most recently led the launch of the Bvlgari Hotel and Residences Shanghai as general manager.
Coast Wenatchee Center Hotel in Wenatchee, Washington, named Brian Butler director of sales. Butler, who has 15 years of hospitality experience, started a transportation/logistics business, Postal Express, which was recently sold to Royal Mail of London.
The Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, promoted Ariel Bruckner to director of beverage, and Brian Exner and Kristian LaPlante to assistant directors of food and beverage. Bruckner previously was general manager of Todd’s English Bluezoo at The Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort. Exner previously served as assistant director of banquets at the property, while LaPlante, a certified sommelier, had been director of restaurants.
Sofitel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills in Los Angeles welcomed Aidan Demarest as director of nightlife. Demarest, a fixture in the Los Angeles hospitality nightlife industry for more than 20 years, most recently oversaw Beaches in West Hollywood. He also has a private cocktail consulting firm, Liquid Assets.
W Hotels Worldwide appointed Greg Durrer general manager of the soon-to-open W Aspen in Aspen, Colorado. Durrer joined the team after holding numerous operational leadership positions at several Marriott luxury, full-service and select-service hotels.
Sheraton Phoenix Downtown named Jon Erickson director of sales and marketing. Erickson returns to Arizona, where he once worked as director of sales and marketing at the Renaissance Phoenix Downtown Hotel before leaving for Atlanta’s Westin Peachtree Plaza in 2018.
Makeready named Justin Fields senior vice president – restaurants, bars and retail. He had been vice president of hospitality for The Joule in Dallas. The company also announced Mike Tarumi, former general manager of Uchi/Uchiba in Dallas, as general manager food and beverage at Noelle in Nashville, Tennessee. Elliot Cunniff is executive chef at Couvant in the Eliza Jane Hotel in New Orleans, while Jason Starnes is executive chef at The Alida in Savannah, Georgia. Cunniff joined Makeready in 2018, leading kitchens at properties in Dallas, Savannah and New Orleans. Starnes relocated from Atlanta, where he oversaw the food and beverage offerings at Barnsley Resort.
The Ritz-Carlton Bal Harbour, Miami, appointed Joseph Fisher hotel manager. Fisher joined the property from the Embassy Suites by Hilton, South Jordan & Palm Beach Gardens in Utah, where he was opening general manager.
Miguel Leopoldo Gallegos is executive chef of Casa Velas in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. He most recently was executive senior sous chef at AM Resorts’ Puerto Vallarta properties.
Onefinestay appointed Stephen Haskell general manager, America, leading the brand’s growth strategy while overseeing day-to-day operations and integrated partnerships of the business in select U.S. markets. Haskell joined the company from New York Magazine, where he was a strategic adviser and helped launch “New York by New York,” a program offering unique experiences to paying members. He also founded and remains CEO of MyMedia Inc.
Jim Koutsky is director of finance for the Grand Plaza Hotel and The Beachcomber, both Benchmark Resorts & Hotels properties in St. Pete Beach, Florida. He had been director of finance for Benchmark’s Stonewall Resort of Roanoke, West Virginia.
Sean Linehan is director of rooms at Chatham Bars Inn in Chatham, Massachusetts. Linehan had been director of guest services for front-of-house operations at The Hermitage Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee. Sheri Thimas is spa director at Chatham Bars Inn. Thimas most recently was spa director at the Armand Salon Spa in Kingston, Massachusetts.
Ponte Vedra Inn & Club in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, appointed Tomas Gonzalez director of tennis at its racquet club, overseeing operations of the 15-court facility. Gonzalez formerly was director of racquet sports at Kingsmill Resort in Williamsburg, Virginia.
Coast Hotels USA promoted Nathan Gray to corporate director of revenue strategy and Kerry Ung to area revenue manager. Gray previously was regional director of revenue management while Ung was revenue and reservations manager at Hotel 116 in Bellevue, Washington.
Capella Hotel Group appointed Ronan Henaff general manager of Capella Shanghai, Jian Ye Li in Shanghai, China. Henaff joined the property from The Shanghai Edition, also in Shanghai, where he led the hotel’s opening.
Salamander Hotels & Resorts appointed Chris King chief development officer. A seasoned development and finance executive, King joined Salamander after four years with Brookfield Asset Management in Washington, D.C., where he was vice president of real estate investments.
Pablo Lombardo is food and beverage director for Solmar Hotels & Resorts’ Playa Grande Resort & Grand Spa in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. With more than 20 years’ food and beverage experience, Lombardo has led concepts for hotels in destinations including Acapulco and Cancun, Mexico, and Costa Rica. Solmar Group also named Humberto Ruiz food and beverage director of Grand Solmar at Rancho San Lucas in Cabo San Lucas. Originally from Venezuela, Ruiz has managed food and beverage operations of hotel chains including One & Only, InterContinental, Meliá and Hyatt.
James Massey is director of culinary experience for The Essex, Vermont’s Culinary Resort & Spa in Essex, Vermont. Massey most recently was executive chef and owner of the Field and Cellar, a fine-dining restaurant in Great Barrington, Massachusetts.
The Langham, Hong Kong, appointed Scott Murray general manager. Murray had been hotel operations director of the Langham Hospitality Group after spending more than two years in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, as the hotel manager at Burj Al Arab Hotel.
Michael Nöske is director of the IntercityHotel Hamburg-Altona in Hamburg, Germany. He has several years of senior management experience, including at the Azimut Hotel Cologne in Köln, Germany.
Waterford Hotel Group appointed Fabio Pari-Di-Monriva general manager of the Marriott in downtown Hartford, Connecticut. Pari-Di-Monriva joined Waterford in 2013 as task force operations manager and held numerous posts at Waterford-managed hotels.
Kurtis Sylvester joined The St. Regis San Francisco as account director. He formerly was director of West Coast group sales at Las Alcobas, a Luxury Collections Hotel, Napa Valley, in St. Helena, California.
Hospitality Ventures Management Group in Atlanta named Dana Tsakanikas executive vice-president and chief investment officer, a newly created role. Tsakanikas most recently was executive vice-president with Stonehill, the financial arm of Atlanta’s Peachtree Hotel Group.
Valerie Whiddon is payroll manager for Stonebridge Companies in Denver. Whiddon is a certified payroll professional with 22 years’ experience working for companies including Coors, Rock Bottom, SourceGas and most recently, Red Robin.