pivot and reinvent during COVID-19 , educated attendees about workout options , how to gain access to new funding sources , discussed how to finance new acquisitions and find distressed hotel deals .
“ HALCYON DAYS ARE HERE ” Leading off the event with the morning keynote was industry legend Leland Pillsbury , founder and chairman of TLG Investment Partners , Fort Lauderdale , Florida , who said what won ’ t change [ about the hotel industry ] is investor appetite for returns .
Pillsbury was pragmatic in his remarks about the state of the global economy , but at the same time bullish about the prospects for many segments of the hotel industry , especially in the United States . “ Hotels are the most volatile of real estate asset types , offering investors the strongest returns of any form of real estate during cyclical upswings ,” he said in front of some 250 attendees at the Mandarin Oriental Miami . “ We are heading into one of those upswings right now .
“ The recovery is going to be stronger and faster than anyone is projecting . In my opinion , we are going to have a ‘ snap back ,’ which will see revenues and profits rebound very quickly . Halcyon days in the hospitality industry are here . Carpe Diem … seize the moment for it is upon you .”
Pillsbury said a spotty recovery is gathering steam with luxury hotels , resorts , leisure and drive-to destinations doing well and about to do even better . He added that select-service and some extended-stay products are doing well , while upper-upscale , full-service and large branded hotels face more uncertainty as group business lags and Gen X consumers dominate the market .
U . S . Congresswoman Maria Elvira Salazar of Florida offered the lunchtime keynote address and is joined here by HOTELS Publisher David
Wood ( l .) and HOTELS CEO Ali Jahangiri