Nominations

🏨 Evok Collection appointed Aya Hanova as Chief Operating Officer, overseeing operations and growth, coinciding with new openings: Brach Roma (Q1 2027) and Nolinski Golfe de Saint-Tropez (Q2 2027). Hanova, with over 18 years of luxury hospitality experience in Europe and the Middle East, has worked at Rosewood Hôtel de Crillon, Four Seasons George V, and Burj Al Arab Jumeirah. Her leadership focuses on talent development and service excellence.

📅 Raffles, Accor's luxury brand, has four European locations: Paris, London, Istanbul, and Warsaw, focusing on iconic capitals rather than extensive expansion. Accor's European strategy prioritizes converting historical assets in mature markets. Le Royal Monceau – Raffles Paris is a strategic asset in Accor's luxury platform, demanding high leadership standards. Nicolas Dubort, with experience in luxury hotels like Four Seasons and Mandarin Oriental, has worked in North America, Europe, and the Middle East.

📄 François Georges remains president of Sandaya, appointing Jean-Yves Challies as CEO and Cécile Williot Scarfogliere as deputy CEO. The executive committee expands to include Loïc Cerdan as secretary general and Jean-Marc Hoarau, who leads an extended scope covering commerce, marketing, and IT. Tiphaine Ballarin, Sébastien Mendes, and Manuel Trarieux continue their roles. Roberto Franchi and Marie Le Saux oversee territories in Italy and France. Jean-Yves Challies previously spent nine years as deputy director.

📈 Qui ? Leire Leoz. Quand ? Nomination récente. Où ? Accor, réseau franchisé. Quoi ? Diriger la performance et l'excellence opérationnelle, renforcer les relations avec les propriétaires et partenaires, optimiser les process et outils internes. Comment ? En rapportant à Jean-Jacques Morin et intégrant le Comité exécutif. Avant Accor ? Vice-Présidente Relations EMEA chez Marriott, avec des rôles chez Starwood Hotels & Resorts et InterContinental Hotels Group. Diplômée d’un master en finance de l’Université de Bristol.

💰 Who? Jo Boydell, CEO of Travelodge. When? 2025. Where? United Kingdom, Spain. What? Travelodge opened 21 new UK hotels by 2025, with new projects in the UK and Spain. How? Despite challenges, they continued investing in growth and quality. Revenue rose slightly, but RevPAR declined by nearly 2%. Boydell criticized the UK government for overlooking the broader hospitality sector, emphasizing Travelodge's role as a key employer and investor in local communities.

📈 Marriott International Group President, U.S. & Canada Liam Brown will chair the AHLA Board of Directors in 2026, with Davidson Hospitality CEO Thom Geshay as vice chair and Summit Hotel Properties CEO Jon Stanner as secretary/treasurer. Brown will retire in June 2026, after nearly 40 years at Marriott, passing the chairmanship to Geshay. AHLA prepares for a “mega decade” of global events, aiming to highlight American hospitality.

📆 Bertrand Franchise appoints Camille Berthaud as General Manager of Bertrand Casual Food, effective January 5, 2026. This role oversees brands like Au Bureau, Hippopotamus, and Leon. Berthaud, from a family of hoteliers, trained at Ecole Hôtelière de Lausanne and ESCP, and began at Horwath HTL. He joined Compass Group France in 2008, grew Eurest for nine years, and became Deputy CEO in 2017, launching the Exalt concept.

🏨 Satya Anand has been appointed Group President for the US, Canada, and the Caribbean & Latin America (CALA) at Marriott International. With 37 years at Marriott, Anand will oversee a unified governance structure for the Americas. He previously expanded the EMEA region to over 1,300 hotels. Neal Jones becomes President of EMEA, bringing over 30 years of experience in sales and marketing. Anand will join the Marriott global headquarters in Bethesda, Maryland.