| About The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. |
| The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. is the largest luxury hospitality organization in the world, representing over 430 of the finest hotels, resorts and spas in over 80 countries. Its mission is to curate and champion an exclusive collection of independent properties, including grand palaces and intimate city hideaways, luxury tent enclaves and expansive self-contained resorts. Established in 1928 by several influential and forward-thinking European hoteliers, it started with 38 initial members. Its loyal customers demand levels of quality they have come to expect of the brand, while seeking authentic and enriching travel experiences. Leading Hotel members are utterly unique and boldly independent. To be considered for inclusion, a hotel must adhere to strict quality standards and master the art of extraordinary hospitality. For reservations, visit www.LHW.com. |
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The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. is the prestigious luxury hospitality organization representing more than 430 of the world's finest hotels, resorts and spas. Headquartered in New York City, the company maintains a network of 24 offices in key cities around the world.
The company was established in 1928 by a group of influential and forward-thinking European hoteliers. With 38 initial members, among them Hotel Negresco in Nice, the Mena House in Cairo and King David Hotel in Jerusalem, the organization was initially known as "The Luxury Hotels of Europe and Egypt". Recognizing the importance of establishing direct contact with the traveling public and travel agencies in the North American market, the founders opened an office in New York, calling this satellite operation "Hotel Representative, Inc." - or HRI.
By the end of the 1960s, HRI had grown to represent 70 hotels - all of which were in Europe. Early in 1971, the board of directors and management of The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. decided to expand the scope of the organization to include new members from around the globe, to meet the demands of the increased numbers of international luxury travelers. Hotel membership continued to grow through the next two decades, and with it, the need for the establishment of regional offices. By the end of the 1980s, there were 235 Leading Hotels of the World, serviced through offices in the United States, Europe, Asia, Australia and Latin America.
Requirements for becoming a member of The Leading Hotels of the World stipulate that a hotel must meet exacting standards of excellence in all areas affecting guest comfort, convenience and well being. The organization does not solicit new members; hotels must apply for inclusion. Upon successful completion of a rigorous application and inspection process, only the most eminent hotels are accepted for admission. Each member hotel is periodically re-inspected to ensure strict adherence to the company's quality standards. Every two years, The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. publishes a Directory of its member hotels, which is only one of the company's marketing endeavors. Additional services provided by the organization include extensive sales and promotional activities, advertising and public relations support, and an array of special programs for member hotels and their guests.
Andrea Kracht, proprietor of Baur au Lac in Zurich, Switzerland, is the chairman of Hotel Representative, A.G., the parent company of The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. Mr. Theodore Teng is president and chief executive officer of The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. |
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Global Reach
The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. is the prestigious luxury hospitality organization representing the world's finest hotels and resorts. Headquartered in New York City, the company maintains offices in 23 cities around the globe.
History
Formed in 1928 by an entrepreneurial group of forward-thinking Europeans, The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. was initially known as The Luxury Hotels of Europe and Egypt, representing 38 hotels with approximately 9,000 rooms and suites. Today, the company represents more than 430 luxury hotels with over 84,000 rooms, in 80 countries.
Hotel Collection
With more than 430 members in over 80 countries, The Leading Hotels of the World offers all kinds of one-of-a-kind luxury hotels, resorts and spas. Click here for a complete list of member hotels.
Acceptance Standards
Hotels seeking to join The Leading Hotels of the World must apply for admission. To be considered for inclusion, a hotel must be in the luxury category and meet the most exacting standards with respect to accommodations, service, cuisine, employee behavior and facilities - in short - all aspects affecting guest comfort, convenience and mood. Inspection reports, based on hundreds of separate, stringent criteria, are subsequently filed with the Executive Committee whose members then vote for acceptance or rejection. Only the world's most distinguished properties are admitted to The Leading Hotels of the World, thereby assuring a constant adherence to the organization's exacting standards of high quality.
Headquarters
99 Park Avenue
New York, NY 10016
Telephone: (212) 515-5600
Facsimile: (212) 515-5635
Key Officers
Andrea Kracht, Chairman
Ted Teng, President & Chief Executive Officer
Daniel Neumann, Senior Vice President & Chief Financial Officer
Ownership
The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hotel Representative, Inc. (HRI) |
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Dedicated to delivering the utmost value to its member hotels, as well as unparalleled hospitality offerings to its discerning clientele, The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. consistently evaluates potential and existing member hotels by a demanding set of quality standards. Serving as the benchmark for the luxury hospitality industry, the meticulous criteria by which the company judges and accepts its members are periodically reviewed and revised to adapt to the changing landscape and guest expectations.
The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. established its product and service standards through Leading Quality Assurance, a joint venture that conducts anonymous property inspections for the world's most prestigious hospitality organizations. The detailed point system is designed to cover all phases of the guest experience, from reservation to check out, including every aspect of the hotel product from reception, to back-of-house. A recent revamping of the standards criteria has strengthened the original system while integrating new, forward-thinking categories.
In evaluating the current environment and evolving expectations and purchasing patterns of high-end consumers, it became evident that, to accurately measure a hotel's performance, it had to be done on a behavioral and intuitive level as well. Standards such as, "Did the employee personalize the interaction in any way (i.e. engage in polite conversation) and relate to the guests as individuals?" evaluate the genuine understanding of guests on a personalized level; the goal being to eliminate mechanical interaction and ensure an authentic connection between staff and guest.
Commenting on the changes, Ted Teng, president and chief executive officer, noted, "In our efforts to ensure our members excel and outstrip their competition, we undertook a thorough reevaluation of our standards criteria that obliges our hotels to continually deliver an even more outstanding luxury experience to their guests."
Mr. Teng continued, "By enhancing and further defining product standards, and adding staff behavioral factors, we have substantially raised the bar when it comes to demanding and delivering excellence. In order to attain higher scores, hotels definitely have to pay even greater attention to precision, and focus closely on personnel training and empowerment."
Trent Walsh, managing director of Leading Quality Assurance added, "By evaluating other noted luxury brands including Mandarin Oriental, Four Seasons and Ritz-Carlton, at LQA we have amassed the most comprehensive set of global benchmarking data in the industry. Armed with this information, and using the revised, more exacting set of inspection standards, Leading Hotels is in a unique position to offer its members a distinct advantage, by enabling them to raise their own quality profiles to overmatch their competition."
Throughout its more than 80-year history, The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. has always prized the individuality and authenticity of each of its member hotels. This new set of standards, reworked to a higher international level, is designed to help them best showcase those qualities, and to attract and retain a loyal clientele in these highly competitive times. |
| Click on the picture for biographical information. |
Chairman
Andrea Kracht
Andrea Kracht is a sixth generation member of the owner family and delegate of the board of directors of the Hotel Baur au Lac since 1990.
He is a member of the Executive Committee of The Leading Hotels of the World since 1999 and served as Vice Chairman since 2000. He was appointed to the position of Chairman in November 2010. Andrea Kracht serves on the Compensation Committee as well as on the Audit Committee of LHW. He is a member of the Quality Committee of Leading Quality Assurance.
Andrea Kracht was born in Zurich, Switzerland. He attended the renowned International School of Le Rosey in Rolle and Gstaad, Switzerland, where he graduated in 1977 with the French Baccalauréat. In 1981, he was awarded the diploma from the École Hôtelière in Lausanne. He visited a management program at Cornell University, Ithaca, NY in 1986.
After completing his academic studies, Andrea Kracht began his hotel career by working in a variety of capacities in several properties such as the Badrutt's Palace Hotel, St. Moritz, Hotel Hermitage, Monte-Carlo, Claridge's, London, Hotel Ritz, Paris, The Mansion on Turtle Creek, Dallas, Hotel Plaza-Athénéé and Grand Bay Hotel, New York.
President and Chief Executive Officer
Ted Teng
Ted Teng was appointed president and chief executive officer of The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd., in September 2008. In his position, Mr. Teng oversees and directs all aspects of business strategy, operations, and performance growth for the premier luxury hospitality organization. The company, which represents over 430 predominantly independent hotels, provides global sales, marketing and distribution services through an expansive network of worldwide sales and reservations offices. Based at the company's headquarters in New York, Mr. Teng also holds a seat on the board of directors.
Since joining The Leading Hotels of the World, Mr. Teng has developed and begun executing a detailed five-year business plan which focuses on strengthening the brand and driving increased revenue to member hotels. Within the plan, he has also asserted the crucial importance of dedication and adherence to quality, in the firm belief that by elevating the overall level among the collection, all hotels will benefit. Taking as his motto "Preserve, Enhance, and Invent," he seeks to honor and uphold the more than eight-decade-old traditions of the organization, while innovating to achieve greater strength and success in the future.
Immediately before joining the organization, Mr. Teng was the principal and chief executive officer of Prime Opus Partners, LP, a hotel investment and operations firm he founded in 2006. In 2005/2006, he served as executive-in-residence and was actively involved through various volunteer leadership roles at the School of Hotel Administration, Cornell University.
Throughout his 30-year career in the hospitality industry, Mr. Teng has been responsible for the growth of some of the most prominent brands in the world. For five years he was president, chief operating officer of Wyndham International, Inc., where he oversaw the core branded hotel products, as well as the company's third-party management operations, comprised of over 200 properties generating USD 2.5 billion in annual revenue.
He also served as president, Asia-Pacific, for Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc., immediately following the merger of Starwood Lodging, Westin, and Sheraton. He oversaw the integration of that company's branded hotel operations in the region, and was responsible for the operating and financial performance of over 70 hotels and resorts in 17 countries. New projects executed during Mr. Teng's tenure included the St. Regis in Shanghai, the first international W in Sydney, the highest quality Four Points Hotel in Sydney, the Sheraton in Sapporo, and the Westin Kyoto.
Prior to the Starwood merger, Mr. Teng was the president of Asia-Pacific for Westin Hotels, where he was credited with having achieved significant growth in the number of hotels, including the launch of notable new flagships in Sydney, Melbourne, Guam, Kuala Lumpur, Awaji Island, Taipei, and Shanghai. Before coming to Westin, he was with ITT Sheraton, where he served for 14 years in a variety of senior and strategic capacities in operations, finance and development in North America, Hawaii and Asia. Most notably, Mr. Teng successfully negotiated the first ITT Sheraton equity investment in China in a multi-use project that included today's St. Regis Beijing.
A graduate of the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration, Mr. Teng has an MBA from the University of Hawaii. Born in Shanghai, China, he grew up in Hong Kong, emigrated to the U.S. at age 13 and became a U.S. citizen soon after.
Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Daniel Neumann
Daniel Neumann was promoted to the position of senior vice president and chief financial officer for The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. in December 2008. He oversees all aspects of accounting, human resources and offices services, as well as corporate administration and oversight of business growth and development. Mr. Neumann joined the company in October 1998 and was appointed senior vice president, finance in September 2002.
Prior to joining The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd, Mr. Neumann was corporate controller for the Lowell Hotel, New York and L'Ermitage, Beverly Hills, where he supervised a USD 40 million renovation of the Beverly Hills property, as well as maintaining all financial aspects of both hotels. He began his career at Pannell Kerr Forster, an international public accounting and consulting firm where he departed in July 1994 as senior manager.
Mr. Neumann holds a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting from Villanova University. He also earned his CPA in November of 1987.
Senior Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer
Claudia Kozma Kaplan
Claudia Kozma Kaplan was appointed senior vice president & chief marketing officer for The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. in December 2011, having served as senior vice president of marketing and corporate communications since 2008. In this capacity, she is responsible for all areas of marketing including, branding, public policy, communications, events, interactive marketing, web operations, CRM and customer loyalty. Mrs. Kozma Kaplan joined the organization in 2003 as vice president of corporate communications.
Mrs. Kozma Kaplan had previously served three years as director of public relations and special events for the Societé des Bains de Mer in Monte Carlo, where she managed all media relations and events for the company's hotels, resorts, casinos, and restaurants.
From 1995 to 2000, she was global director of marketing and corporate communications for The Rafael Group, a leading management company of five-star luxury hotels located throughout the world. Mrs. Kozma Kaplan began her career in the hotel industry at The Regent Beverly Wilshire in Beverly Hills, where she departed in 1995 as international sales and marketing manager.
Mrs. Kozma Kaplan graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree from Georgetown University, where she studied international business and languages.
Senior Vice President, Human Resources & Organization Development
Patricia Smith
Patricia Smith was appointed to the newly created position of senior vice president of human resources and organization development for The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. in May 2009.
Ms. Smith brings vast experience through a number of roles at multi-national organizations. Since 2006, she operated her own firm, The Smith Factor, LLC, providing consultation in organization development, customer service, leadership, and corporate culture.
Previously, Ms. Smith was executive vice president, human resources for Wyndham International. While at Wyndham, she transformed its corporate culture to substantially maximize performance. Ms. Smith also spent 15 years with The Disney Company in a variety of leadership roles.
Ms. Smith holds a B.A. in Communications from Rollins College in Florida and a M.S. in Career and Human Resource Development from Rochester Institute of Technology in New York.
Senior Vice President, Distribution & Reservations Management
Jon Londeen
Jon Londeen was named Senior Vice President of Reservations Management, in 2007, having served as Vice President of Reservations Management since 2001. Mr. Londeen is responsible for the day-to-day reservation management of The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd., as well as maintaining relationships with key suppliers and vendors in the reservations and communications areas. He also works closely with the Sales and Marketing Departments and the Regional Offices to optimize reservation production through The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd.'s systems.
Jon is no stranger to The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. or the hotel industry, having served as Director of Membership Services here, as well as Director of Reservations and Global Distribution of the Americas for Forte & Meridien Hotels prior to joining The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd.
Mr. Londeen holds a BSB in Business from the University of Kansas.
Vice President, Membership
Deniz Omurgonulsen
Deniz Omurgonulsen was appointed vice president of membership for The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. in April 2010. In her new role, she is responsible for the overall membership of The Leading Hotels of the World, including managing development, the company's quality initiative, and business performance for the hotels in the portfolio.
Ms. Omurgonulsen joined the company in March 2005 as strategic planning manager. In 2006, she became director of membership development, and has overseen membership acquisition and retention since then. Ms. Omurgonulsen has been a key member of the Quality Committee which continuously monitors and controls the high level of standards required from all member hotels.
Prior to joining The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. Ms. Omurgonulsen worked with Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts in operations based at The Pierre Hotel in New York. In addition to her property responsibilities, she conducted numerous successful corporate-wide training and quality initiatives, including participating in pre-opening hotel training teams and implementing a global e-learning platform. She graduated with honors from Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration.
Vice President, Interactive Marketing
Phil Koserowski
In September 2011 Phil Koserowski was appointed vice president of interactive marketing for the organization. In this position he is responsible for online advertising, web, eCRM, and mobile/emerging platform development.
Mr. Koserowski brings more than 16 years of experience in interactive marketing to his current role. Most recently, he served as a partner and interactive marketing director with Ogilvy & Mather. Mr. Koserowski was also vice president interactive marketing at Sotheby's International Realty where he was responsible for building the interactive marketing department for the global luxury real estate franchise network.
He received his Bachelors Degree in both marketing and computer applications from the University of Notre Dame.
Vice President, EMEA (Europe, Middle East, & Africa)
Claudia Roth
Claudia Roth was named vice president - Europe, Middle East and Africa for The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. in March 2005. In this position she is responsible for the activities of the company's ten sales and reservations offices throughout those regions, and for the development of strategic sales and marketing initiatives to increase business for member hotels. Ms. Roth had previously served as director of sales and marketing for EMEA region, having joined the company in January 2004.
Prior to that, Ms. Roth worked for the Hotel Adlon Kempinski in Berlin, Germany, where she was in charge of the reorganization of the hotel's sales and marketing processes. She gained further international experience during her tenure with Asia's noted luxury hotel company Shangri-La Hotels & Resorts. Based in Hong Kong from 2001 to 2002, she served as director of sales and distribution, with responsibility for the company's worldwide sales offices and distribution strategy.
Ms. Roth's interest in hotel distribution and technology developed when she worked for Pegasus / Utell International Ltd. in Frankfurt, Germany. As vice president sales and marketing for Central Europe, her challenge was to educate member hotels in the most effective use of Pegasus technology to drive incremental revenue in a rapidly changing environment.
Ms. Roth began her career in the international hospitality industry in London where she worked for Hilton International, overseeing all sales and marketing for 9 Hilton hotels in that city.
A German national, Ms. Roth holds a Bachelor of Business in Economics from West London University.
Vice President, Asia Pacific
Philip Ho
Philip Ho joined The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. in March 2009 as vice president of Asia Pacific. Based in Singapore, Mr. Ho is responsible for all aspects of the company's business production and profitability in the Asia Pacific region, including Tokyo, Sydney, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Mumbai. Hired for his acute ability to rethink and reinvent business models in dynamic market conditions, Mr. Ho joined The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. from his previous role as general manager for ZUJI, the region's top online travel retailer and a part of Sabre Holdings.
Mr. Ho began his career at Singapore Airlines in distribution and revenue management and later joined Starwood Hotels & Resorts, where he left a position as vice president, sales and marketing, Asia Pacific to pioneer ZUJI as director of marketing.
A native of Singapore, Mr. Ho is bi-lingual in English and Chinese. He holds a bachelor of science degree from the National University of Singapore and serves as a member of the France Tourism Office's International Advisory Board.
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