uncertainty in the investment community and it trickles down to all aspects of the hospitality business that we live in every day . So , the idea of consolidations ... we ' re probably less focused on acquiring brands and more focused on expanding our portfolio of companies that we manage . Bu absolutely , we are focused on operating companies , and looking at acquisitions , maybe even some we can announce soon .
H : Large , medium , small ? MT : I would say at all levels of scale . It comes back to the investment we ' ve made in talent . The different divisional presence we have and really investing in talent , systems and technology allows us the ability to expand while not losing the touch that is needed for existing and future ownership .
H : How would you characterize competition in the thirdparty management space for business ? MT : Competition is with any company that we are in the same conversation with any ownership group . We certainly don ' t want to lose it , ever . Absolutely — whether it ' s an owner operator or maybe it ' s a company with one to five hotels .
Mark Tamis , president , global operations , Aimbridge Hospitality
“ The changed structure of our development team means better allocation of resources and more dedicated attention on the details that will move the needle in meaningful ways .”
Mark Tamis , president , global operations , said the new divisional structure is a way to be nimbler with hotel owners .
HOTELS caught up with Tamis during the Americas Lodging Investment Summit ( ALIS ) in Los Angeles to bend his ear on thirdparty management companies in the age of consolidation and , to find out , is Aimbridge on the hunt to get even bigger ?
HOTELS : We ' ve seen consolidation in the brand space and , more recently , amongst management companies — yourself included , with Interstate . Others have jumped into the acquisition fray ; Highgate ’ s recent acquisition of Viceroy Hotels & Resorts was a way to purchase management contracts of some important assets upfront . Beyond growing the portfolio organically , is Aimbridge on the lookout for further deals to fold in other management companies ? Mark Tamis : There ' s lots of conversations . There is so much
H : Are you interested at all in picking up brands ? MT : Less so . What we ' re focused on is excellence at the property level of the hotels that we manage . When we can prove that one day , one month , one quarter at a time for existing owners , that just leads to additional properties . The way that we get new business is by operational excellence . And so doing that for a particular owner , not only is it additional hotels that they may have , but the ownership community is actually a pretty small world .
H : How do your development teams work to fold in new hotels ? MT : They ' re cultivating relationships with both existing owners of hospitality real estate and new investors into the hospitality space and helping us acquire new management contracts .
H : How does the structural reorganization set Aimbridge up for future success ? MT : I always say , especially at the large scale we operate , that focus is our friend . So , when Allison reorganized the development team , both geographically and by segment , that ' s really about focus , that they can be experts not only in that area , but cultivate relationships with the owners who invest in that area .
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