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People on the move: Stonehill, Iberostar, Timbers

Stonehill named Jeremy Cooper vice president of business development, responsible for originating and structuring debt and equity investments across Stonehill’s hospitality lending platform and driving the company’s strategic growth efforts.

“We are fortunate and excited to welcome [Cooper] to Stonehill,” said Brent LeBlanc, Stonehill’s executive vice president. “His experience and industry connections will strengthen our team to help us drive our corporate strategy in a fast-changing market environment.” Cooper will help LeBlanc establish the company’s New York City office.

Before joining Stonehill, Cooper, a fourth-generation hotelier, was a senior investments associate with Intrinsic Hotel Capital. Prior to that, he worked with Atlas Real Estate Partners, LW Hospitality Advisors and Hilton Worldwide. Over the course of his career, he has managed relationships and underwritten approximately US$800 million of real estate assets; launched a hotels-to-housing investment platform targeting acquisitions of US$500 million; and published appraisals and market feasibility studies representing more than US$5 billion of hotel and portfolio transactions.

From left, clockwise: Jeremy Cooper (Stonehill), Tracey Pool (Hyatt Regency Baltimore Inner Harbor), Lilian Tolliver (The Palace Hotel) and Brent Gauthier (Luminary Hotel & Co.)
From left, clockwise: Jeremy Cooper (Stonehill), Tracey Pool (Hyatt Regency Baltimore Inner Harbor), Lilian Tolliver (The Palace Hotel) and Brent Gauthier (Luminary Hotel & Co.)

GF Hotels & Resorts appointed Jay Burnett chief investment officer. Burnett was senior vice president, investments and development at Auro Hotels in Greenville, South Carolina, where he was involved with hotel and land acquisitions, feasibility, due diligence, asset management and divestitures. Before his time with Auro, Burnett was vice president of corporate strategies at GF Hotels & Resorts, and prior to that, held a hotel asset management role with AMC Delancey Group.

Wild Dunes Resort, a Destination by Hyatt Hotel in Isle of Palms, South Carolina, named John D’Angelo resort manager. His promotion comes after serving as Wild Dunes Resort’s director of resort operations since November 2020. Before this, he was the opening general manager for the Grand Hyatt Nashville, Tennessee. He served as opening resort manager at Grand Hyatt Baha Mar in Nassau, Bahamas, and helped open the Hyatt Regency Denver at the Colorado Convention Center and the Hyatt Regency Trinidad in Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago.

Maslina Resort, a Relais & Chateaux property near Stari Grad, Croatia, chose Serge Gouloumès head chef. Gouloumès has more than three decades of experience, including at Hotel Ma Maison in Beverly Hills, California, and Restaurant Le Mas Candille in Mougins, France, where he was awarded his first Michelin star in 2005. In 2019, Gouloumès won the Culinary Heritage Prize by the Gault & Millau Guide. He has published three cookbooks based on his knowledge of French cuisine.

PM Hotel Group promoted Joe Del Guidice to senior vice president, hotel operations. Del Guidice has more than 25 years of expertise across all chain scales with both independent properties and brands in the Marriott, Hilton, Hyatt, Wyndham and InterContinental families. Prior to joining PM Hotel Group in 2017, he was president of GF Hotels & Resorts. Mark Dombkoski joined PM Hotel Group as senior corporate director, restaurants and bars. Dombkoski also has more than 25 years’ experience working with hospitality groups including Starr Restaurants and Cornerstone Restaurant Group. He has overseen diverse concepts and large teams, as well as driven the development and launch of new concepts.

Olena Fedorenko is director of wellness for Spa Minerale of Lansdowne Resort in Leesburg, Virginia. She joined the team from TPG Hotels and Resorts in Washington, D.C. She’s also held leadership positions with AC Hotels, Remington Hotels, Interstate Hotels and Resorts, Gateway Hospitality, Hersha Hospitality, Hyatt Hotels and Hilton.

Brent Gauthier is executive chef for all food and beverage operations and outlets at Luminary Hotel & Co. in Fort Myers, Florida. Gauthier joined Luminary in January 2021 as senior sous chef and has since assisted in all aspects of the hotel’s food and beverage department. He joined the property from Gaylord National Harbor in National Harbor, Maryland, where he worked as senior sous chef. Prior to that, he was executive chef at Le Méridien Arlington, Virginia.

Iberostar Group appointed Erika Harms director of coastal health in the company’s sustainability office. Harms, who currently works at the World Resources Institute, has more than a decade of experience in the field of responsible tourism and sustainable ocean economy. She collaborated in the founding of the Global Sustainable Tourism Council and has spent the past two years coordinating the advisory network of the High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy, in which 14 countries committed to sustainably managing their ocean waters and where Iberostar co-chairs the Tourism Action Coalition for a Sustainable Ocean.

Timbers Resorts, which is repositioning to Timbers Company (the parent brand behind Timbers Resorts) in anticipation of new locations and launching additional brands, hired Lisa Hultquist as corporate director of marketing and Nick Hall as director of business development. Hultquist has more than 25 years of leadership experience and has overseen marketing campaigns for travel destinations and hotels including SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment and Hershey Entertainment & Resorts. Prior to joining Timbers, Hall was responsible for real estate acquisitions and oversaw budgeting, financial projects and the construction draw process for hotel developments at The Kessler Collection hotels and resorts. Timbers also promoted Jesse Geremia to managing director of hospitality and Carrie Bligh to director of operations. Geremia previously served as director of operations and also led individual properties across the Timbers Resorts portfolio for 11 years while Bligh was general manager of Timbers Jupiter, Florida.

IHG Hotels & Resorts named Jolie Fleming senior vice president of guest products and platforms, focused on enhancing the guest experience through technological innovation. Fleming has more than 20 years’ experience leading digital-first organizations. She spent nearly a decade in FinTech and most recently served as managing director of digital at E*Trade.

The Saxon Hotel, Villas and Spa in Johannesburg, South Africa, named Matthew Foxon executive chef. Foxon recently was executive chef at Johannesburg’s 54 on Bath after previously working as head chef at New Street Grill and executive chef at the Criterion Restaurant, both in London, England.

Access Point Financial appointed Mike Huffman managing director. Prior to joining Access Point Financial, Huffman held several notable roles including vice president for the hospitality sector of Heller Financial. He also served as director of investment management for Highgate Hotels, where he formed strategic relationships with organizations including Westbrook, Goldman Sachs, Blackstone, Rockpoint, Investcorp and Rreff.

Palladium Hotel Group appointed Stefany Jones director of retail affairs in the North American market. Jones has more than 18 years of experience in the travel agency industry, specializing in account management, marketing and business development. She has extensive experience in high-volume Caribbean, Mexico and Central America destinations and hotels. She also has experience negotiating and executing sales for online brands, travel agent groups, consortia accounts and airline brands.

Davidson Hospitality Group appointed Seth McDaniels vice president, openings and transitions, responsible for directing new-build openings, acquisitions and dispositions across company verticals, including Davidson Hotels, Pivot and Davidson Resorts. Before his appointment, McDaniels was director of openings, transitions and brand experience at Hyatt Hotels Corporation. He held a similar corporate role with Two Roads Hospitality prior to Hyatt’s acquisition of the organization in 2018. Earlier in his career, McDaniels was general manager at The Epiphany (now Nobu Hotel Palo Alto) in Palo Alto, California.

Jaime Moench is director of sales and marketing for Montage Deer Valley in Park City, Utah. Moench joined the property from The Ritz-Carlton Resorts of Naples, Florida, where she spent the past five years as market director of sales and marketing. Prior to her time in Naples, Moench was market director of sales and marketing for The Ritz-Carlton Resorts of Miami Beach, Florida. Her first role with Ritz-Carlton was director of sales and marketing for The Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman.

The Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort, Naples, Florida, welcomed Jenny Piccione as general manager. Piccione has more than 18 years of experience within The Ritz-Carlton, including most recently as hotel manager at The Ritz-Carlton Orlando, Grande Lakes, Florida, where she oversaw and managed a US$34 million renovation. She has worked across numerous disciplines, starting her career as a front office agent at The Ritz-Carlton, Palm Beach, Florida in 2002, later becoming rooms executive and director of operations at The Ritz-Carlton, Buckhead, Atlanta, before transitioning to the property’s director of human resources.

Hyatt Regency Baltimore Inner Harbor named Tracey Pool general manager. Pool has worked within Hyatt Regency since the beginning of her 35-year career. She most recently was general manager of Hyatt Regency Boston Harbor, and prior to that was general manager at the Hyatt Regency Dulles in Herndon, Virginia, and Hyatt Centric The Pike Long Beach, California. Pool serves as a board member with Maryland Hotel Lodging Association and Visit Baltimore and served as a board member with the Massachusetts Lodging Association.

The Palace Hotel, a Luxury Collection Hotel in San Francisco, appointed Lilian Tolliver chief engineer. Tolliver started working at the Palace in 1996 on a temporary basis in the accounting department before landing a permanent position the following year, then began her career in engineering as the department’s administrative assistant. At The Palace, Tolliver has held roles including engineering apprentice, journeyman engineer and assistant chief. She became acting chief engineer in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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