Worldwide hotel chain Marriott International has strengthened its UK team with new executive appointments and the creation of a new area operating team.
Jurgen Giesbert, formerly senior vp for Renaissance Hotels in North America, becomes the new executive vp for the UK, Ireland, the Middle East and Africa.
Mr Giesbert will oversee the recently announced Marriott/Whitbread joint venture which took over 46 hotels owned by Whitbread and their integration into the Marriott International portfolio as managed properties.
He will also be in charge of the growth of the Marriott brands in his region.
Marriott also announced the creation of a new UK operating team for Scotland, North and West England and the Midlands.
It will be headed by Mark Satterfield who, as area vp, will lead a team of four. He was previously general manager of the JW Marriott in Seoul, Korea.
Marriott has 76 hotels in the UK and Ireland with nearly 13,000 rooms. Ed Fuller, president and managing director of international lodging, said at the press conference in London announcing the changes the region forms “our number one market outside of the United States both as destination and source markets for other destinations.”
Mr Giesbert told the conference that “significant progress” had been made integrating the former Whitbread hotels and staff with only 70 out of thousands of staff leaving.
Jan-Willem den Ridder, regional vp international hotel development, said Marriott was looking to increase its properties in the UK, including the up-market Renaissance brand and the economy Courtyard by Marriott.
“We think there are gaps in Oxford, Cambridge, Bath, London and Edinburgh and we shall be pro-active there.
“There will also be a new generation of Renaissance hotels, a product which has been dynamically successful in Asia and America but has not really been seen in the UK,” he said.
“We shall have a major push on Courtyard by Marriott. There are 12 in the UK and huge opportunities to grow that number.”
Mr Fuller also said that refurbishment on Marriott's new London flagship the Grosvenor House in Park Lane would cost up to £100m and be completed by summer 2007.
Work on another flagship property, the listed but currently closed Shelbourne Hotel in Dublin would be completed by summer of 2006.