SONESTA’S NEW AREA DIRECTOR OF SALES AND MARKETING
Sonesta Hotels has appointed Kevin Kelly as the new area director of sales and marketing. In this role, Kelly will lead the sales efforts for Sonesta’s Chicago full-service properties, including The Royal Sonesta Chicago Downtown, The Royal Sonesta Chicago River North and The Allegro Royal Sonesta.
With over 30 years of experience, Kelly has spent his entire career in sales at both the hotel and corporate levels. He joins Sonesta from the Radisson Blu Aqua Hotel, where he most recently served as director of sales and marketing. Before that, Kelly spent 15 years with Hyatt, where he held a variety of roles, including regional vice president of sales (full-service hotels) for the Northeast region in New York City and vice president of transient sales out of Chicago.
THREE EXECUTIVE APPOINTMENTS AT CLUB QUARTERS HOTELS
Club Quarters Hotels, a hotel brand and management company, has added three new leaders to its executive team. Joseph Turano has been appointed as the new chief operating officer, Shawn Usami assumes the role of the new vice president of revenue management and Kendall Viola steps into the position of the new vice president of marketing.
“We could not be more excited to welcome such an exceptional leadership team to our company as we continue to grow the brand on a global scale,” said John Paul Nichols, president and CEO of Club Quarters Hotels.
Turano brings over 25 years of management experience to his new role. Most recently, he served as vice president of Freehand Generator Hotels, overseeing all U.S. assets and developing their first third-party management agreement for the Paramount Hotel. Turano has also held several senior leadership roles at major hotel brands, including Hilton Worldwide, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Hyatt Hotels Corporation and YOTEL.
Usami has worked for nearly 15 years in revenue management and distribution. Most recently, he served as vice president of Revenue and Distribution at EOS Hospitality. Usami has also held several leadership roles in various organizations ranging from urban branded properties to ultra-luxury resorts.
Before joining Club Quarters Hotels, Viola was the director of marketing and public relations for Sir Richard Branson’s luxury-lifestyle hotel in New York City. She has over 15 years of hospitality experience and has held several executive roles at luxury hotel groups, including the Hollywood Roosevelt, Dream Hotel Group, InterContinental Hotels and the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company.
MORE MOVES
OUTRIGGER Resorts & Hotels has appointed Priya Sharma as sales & marketing manager at Castaway Island, Fiji.
Sharma has over 16 years of hotel experience, having worked at Marriott International and Sofitel Fiji Resort & Spa, among others. Sharma was most recently the complex hospitality manager at Vuda Marina.
Anantara Hotels, Resorts and Spas has appointed Gaudéric Harang and Wael Soueid as general managers for two of its European properties.
Harang assumes the general manager role at the Anantara Plaza Nice Hotel, marking the brand’s entry into France. With over five years of experience at Anantara and Minor Hotels, Harang most recently held the position of general manager at Anantara Sir Bani Yas Resorts in the UAE.
Soueid joins as the general manager of the Anantara Vilamoura Algarve Resort in Portugal, transitioning from his previous role at Anantara Tozeur Sahara Resort in Tunisia. Soueid’s career includes executive roles at properties in the UAE from 2011 to 2019, including serving as the area general manager for Abu Dhabi properties like the Qasr Al Sarab Desert Resort & Spa by Anantara.