Q & A
HEY, YO!
NEW YOTEL CHIEF STEERS THE HOTEL INNOVATOR INTO THE NEXT ERA.
By TATIANA VALENZUELA
YOTEL was born in the sky. After being upgraded to first class, founder Simon Woodroffe had an epiphany, a transformative hotel business model that would provide travelers with luxury comforts in a guestroom that felt like an airplane cabin. Together with then CEO, Gerard Greene, the first YOTEL hotel opened in 2007 at, naturally, an airport— Gatwick, to be exact.
Then and since, YOTEL has prided itself on being a designand tech-led brand. Now, it has new leadership at the top, with the recent appointment of ex-Marriott executive Phil Andreopoulos as CEO, who is seeking to build upon YOTEL’ s appetite for innovation. HOTELS spoke with him about what’ s on the horizon, its relationship with majority shareholder Al-Bahar Group and why he calls Marriott
International’ s Liam Brown a mentor.
HOTELS: YOTEL currently operates 23 hotels around the world and aims to double its portfolio to 15,000 rooms by 2030. What is your strategy to help YOTEL reach this goal? Andreopoulos: The next step is to focus on four key areas. First, our systems, specifically loyalty and distribution and make sure they are as strong as they can be for existing hotels and future projects. Second is our people and developing and strengthening our already incredible team. Third, our brand: I’ ve always been an admirer of YOTEL’ s strong brand position in the market and want to ensure that we remain a challenger to the industry. Last is to grow with purpose, not just pace. We want to expand in markets where YOTEL resonates with travelers and can deliver long-term value for our hotel owners and franchisees, while accelerating growth across all our existing footholds rather than focusing on a single region. That means being selective, choosing the right locations, partnering with the right stakeholders, and ensuring every opening strengthens the brand.
HOTELS: Kuwait’ s Al-Bahar Group is now YOTEL’ s majority owner. Do they have certain growth expectations in mind, and how will they help fuel that growth? Andreopoulos: Al-Bahar Group has a clear, long-term vision for YOTEL and is deeply committed to helping us grow. As majority owners, they’ re not only providing the support and capital to accelerate our pipeline but also ensuring we stay disciplined in choosing the right markets and the right opportunities. With
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