Island Hospitality Management LLC on Tuesday announced that Tim Walker has rejoined the company as president. Walker will be responsible for executing a new growth strategy to double the size of the company’s managed portfolio over the next three to five years to approximately 150 hotels. Currently, Island manages a portfolio of 76 hotels for five different ownership groups.
To achieve its growth goals, the company will focus on forming strategic relationships with a limited group of institutional owners who require sophisticated operating and reporting systems and have a longer-term ownership model. Island plans to increase its ownership base from five ownership groups currently to approximately 10. The company will operate hotels within Island’s core competency—upscale extended-stay, select-service, and compact full-service hotels ranging in size from approximately 200 to 250 rooms.
Walker said that while Island generally has and will continue to work with individual hotel owners, the company’s advantages and expertise are best suited for institutional investors, including public and privately held funds that require the specialized, sophisticated financial reporting and operating experience.
Island has the financial strength and flexibility to co-invest with owners, according to Walker. “Some owners want their operators to have a financial stake in their assets,” he said. “We approach every hotel we operate with an owner’s viewpoint, but are comfortable co-investing, when appropriate.” Walker added that the company also is eying opportunities to acquire other hotel management companies.
Walker also noted Island’s experience in renovation and repositioning, especially due to the increased amount of money that is expected to be invested renovations and repositionings in the next two years.
Walker spent the majority of his career at Island, where, over 17 years, he rose to the position of president. He served briefly as CEO of Innkeepers USA Trust, a private ownership group with more than 70 hotels, before rejoining Island. He began his career with Promus Corp., operating Embassy Suites-branded hotels.