Espire Hospitality Group has named Akhil Arora, the hospitality company’s Chief Operating Officer (COO), as its next Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
Arora is an industry veteran with over 20 years of experience in hospitality and is qualified as a ‘Certified Hotel Administrator’ (CHA) from the American Hotel and Lodging Educational Institute. In his fresh role at Espire Hospitality Group, he will spearhead the company’s overall business, continuing to focus on the expansion plans.
Arora joined Espire Hospitality Group in May 2021, with extensive experience of working with India’s leading hospitality brands including Oberoi, Leela, Hyatt, Renaissance, and The Imperial, after which he moved to Hotelivate to set up and successfully run their Asset Management division. His diverse knowledge in hotel operations and business strategy encompasses experience of working in Rooms Division, Food & Beverage service, Sales & Marketing and Revenue Management which adds great value towards the growth objective of the company.
Arora has successfully expanded the portfolio of Espire Hospitality Group from two to currently 10 operating hotels. With six more hotels planned to open in 2023, the group will have 16 hotels in its portfolio by the end of this year.
Under his leadership, Espire Hospitality Group launched the Luxury Boutique resort brand ‘ZANA – Luxury Escapes’, with the opening of its first hotel in Udaipur, in September 2022. In a short time since its inception, the ZANA portfolio will grow from just one hotel to five by the end of 2023.