Ex-Holiday Inn CEO Behind a $500 Million Plan to Luxe Up Troubled Hotels
Photo Credit: Olive Tree Hotels & Resorts is targeting hotels that lack amenities with its $500 million fund and plans to elevate the guest experience. Olive Tree Hotels & Resorts
Skift Take
Another day, another pandemic-born hotel investment group. But Olive Tree Hotels & Resorts is after a type of hotel product not many investors crave, which could provide more of an open playing field.
Ken Hamlet, the former CEO of Holiday Inn, wants to use a more than $500 million war chest to buy limited-service hotels — those that lack amenities like a restaurant or spa — and reposition them into properties with a more posh customer experience.
Think of it as bringing some degree of the Four Seasons to roadside hotels, Hamlet said.
He had the top job at Holiday Inn for nine years in the '80s and early '90s, while the pre-IHG-owned company launched or acquired brands like Embassy Suites, Crowne Plaza, Hampton Inn, and Harrah’s. While he initially considered launching his own fund, Hamlet instead joined Olive Tree Hotels & Resorts, a hotel investment firm where he now serves as CEO, on pursuing deals. He has one under contract so far.
“I started to think about maybe this is a really good time to take advantage of going back into the hotel business and buying distressed assets or buying assets that were well-located, well-branded, r
