Advantis Names President and COO
MURFREESBORO, TN, June 27, 2007. Advantis Hospitality Alliance, a rapidly growing hotel franchise company operating the Vista(R) Brand of hotels, announced today that Ramesh Gokal will be joining the company as President and Chief Operating Officer. He will be responsible for overseeing the daily operations of the company's rapidly growing hotel franchise portfolio and play an important role in the company's organic growth and acquisition program.
"Ramesh has an extensive background in the areas of entrepreneurship, franchise leadership, hotel consulting and mediation expertise and was a key player in the dramatic growth, repositioning and resurrection of the Knights Inn brand after the acquisition by Wyndham Worldwide (formerly HFS & Cendant)" said Dr. Suresh Saraswat, Advantis Chairman and CEO. "In his 30-plus-year hospitality career, he has had diverse industry experience including being an entrepreneur, owning, developing, and managing a varied hotel portfolio, working as a brand president for the world's largest hotel franchise company, Cendant, and selling commercial real estate as a licensed real estate broker in the southeast. In addition Mr. Gokal has found the time to be an active participant on various industry boards and committees. He brings a full complement of leadership, operations and brand management skills and adds seasoned depth to our VISTA(R) team. He also has a recognized lodging industry reputation and strong, positive relationships with industry players and the leadership of most hotel brands."
Dr. Saraswat noted that Ramesh will provide significant input in the company's direction and aggressive growth program. "We are positioned to take our company to the next level and become a significant franchising alternative for many operators that are disillusioned with the current state of the industry," he noted. "We will look to Ramesh for creative ways to address the branding needs of these operators and lead the development of a franchising environment that is the envy of the industry. His hands-on and in-depth experience both as a franchisee and franchisor will help the VISTA(R) team do this smoothly and rapidly."
Most recently, Mr. Gokal was a senior vice president, lodging & franchising for Kapoor & Kapoor, a well respected consulting company. He is a certified mediator and listed on the franchising Panel of Neutrals of the International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution.
About Advantis Hospitality Alliance, LLC- Headquartered in Murfreesboro, TN, is licensed in all 50 states and aggressively expanding the VISTA(R) brand of hotels in the southeastern United States.
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