Former Marriott International executive Phil Andreopoulos is the new CEO of London-based hotel firm Yotel.
Andreopoulos spent more than 20 years at Marriott, where his most recent position was chief commercial officer of Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Before that, he was Marriott's chief operating officer of owner and franchise services for the region. Earlier in his career, Andreopoulos was director of sales and marketing at the London Marriott Hotel Grosvenor Square and then was promoted to Marriott's vice president of global sales, Europe.
Hubert Viriot, who has been CEO at Yotel since May 2014, now is the company’s vice chairman.
Talal Al-Bahar, chairman of Yotel and Kuwait City-based Al-Bahar Group — Yotel's majority shareholder — said in a statement that Viriot’s "experience and vision will continue to add significant value to the company and its stakeholders.”
“Now, it is time to scale the business further. Andreopoulos brings a wealth of commercial and operational experience and under his leadership, Yotel will enhance its distribution, direct business contribution and loyalty proposition. He will also drive expansion of both the managed and franchise businesses in key markets,” Al-Bahar added.
Al-Bahar Group increased its stake in Yotel from 60% to more than 95% on April 1. A controlled affiliate of Starwood Capital previously owned that stake.
In a statement given to CoStar News, Yotel said Andreopoulos "will continue to work closely with [Viriot] in his new role as vice chairman, where his experience and vision will continue to add significant value to the company and its stakeholders.”
Currently, Yotel has 24 hotels in three divisions — 16 in its Yotel brand, five in its Yotelair brand and three in its Yotelpad brand. Its hotels are located across the United States, Europe and Asia.
In July, Yotel announced a development agreement with owner Valpre Capital. As part of the deal, three buildings in Athens will be converted into the 113-room Yotelpad Athens, Yotel’s debut in Greece and Yotelpad’s fourth property. It is due to open in late 2026.
In April, Yotel said it planned to double its hotel portfolio in the next five years.
In March, Yotel named Yvonne Thomsen as its new chief financial officer. Thomsen joined the firm from IHG Hotels & Resorts, where she was most recently vice president of finance for Europe and chief financial officer of Six Senses Hotels. She has been at IHG since February 2013.