The Modern Hotelier

Emily Goldfischer is a London-based travel, food and culture reporter who founded and serves as Editor-in-Chief of Hertelier , an online platform for women in the hospitality industry. She has been living and reporting on UK and European travel trends since relocating from New York to London in 2010. Previously, Emily spent nearly twenty years working in public relations and communications for des...

Stuart Greif is a Global Travel and Hospitality Chief Executive Officer, Board Member, Advisor, Thought Leader, Speaker, Mentor and Investor. At Forbes Travel Guide, Greif drives strategy, innovation, and operations spanning over 80 countries and plays a leading role in Forbes Travel Guide’s Responsible Hospitality initiative. He previously served as Microsoft Corporation's Senior Executive for Tr...

Born and raised in 1980s Brooklyn, Virginia Toledo took inspiration from abandoned buildings and her contractor father to launch a career in interior design. Today, as the creative director of Toledo Geller, Virginia uses her creativity to transform high-end residential and hospitality spaces. In this episode, Virginia shares tips on differentiation in the short-term rental market, advice for futu...

Peter Ricci is the Clinical Associate Professor and Director of the Hospitality & Tourism Management Program at Florida Atlantic University. His experience ranges from destination tourism to hotels to education. He joins us to talk about what he's seeing with labor trends in the hospitality industry and how we can inspire the next generation of hoteliers. In this episode, you'll learn: The val...

Kevin Osterhaus is a storytelling expert with a wealth of experience working with renowned hotel groups such as The Standard, Bunkhouse, and Graduate Hotels. Since becoming President of Graduate Hotels in 2021, Kevin has focused on launching programs like the Graduate Academy for employee education and development. He discusses the importance of storytelling in hotels and shares examples of creati...

Stephen Shedletzky —or “Shed” to his friends— helps leaders make it safe and worth it for people to speak up. He supports humble leaders—those who know they are both a part of the problems they experience and the solutions they can create— as they put their people and purpose first. After years on a corporate track, Shed was introduced to and inspired by the work of best-selling author and TED spe...

Jeremy Wells is the owner and partner of Ozarker Lodge, an independent hotel in Branson, Missouri. He is also a partner at Longitude, a hospitality branding and design agency, and co-founder of Flyover Development. Jeremy has authored two books, "Future Hospitality" in 2022, and his newest book, "Indie Hotel," was published earlier this year. David Millili and Steve Carran sit down with Jeremy to...

Anthony Melchiorri is the creator and host of Hotel Impossible, President of Argeo Hospitality, co-host of the No Vacancy Podcast, keynote speaker, and author of his new book, "Show Up: The Five Steps to Getting Out of Your Own Way." He joins us to share his inspiration behind writing the book and what it means to "Show Up" for yourself.  Whether you work in hospitality or not, Anthony's book and...

Aradhana Khowala is a global expert and one of the most influential leaders in the hospitality, travel, and tourism sector. Her career has spanned 20+ years, five continents, and more than 75 countries. Today, she is the CEO of Aptamind Partners, a strategic consultancy, which combines hard data and decades of experience to advise governments, emerging destinations, and public and private organiza...

Brian Monette is the CEO of Transition Path, a pioneering company that specializes in capturing and cataloging internal knowledge to prepare organizations for transitions and uncertainties. We'll explore how the sucessful transfer of knowledge can have a massive impact on employee happiness, retention, and performance In this episode, you'll learn: The importance of successful transitions of knowl...

Today, our guest is Frank Reeves, the Co-Founder & CEO of Avvio, which recently merged with the SHR group. He is more than a tad obsessed with delivering innovative technologies and new distribution networks to grow direct bookings for hotels. Frank’s unwavering focus on innovation led him to build the hospitality industry's first fully guest-centric booking platform powered by artificial inte...

Are you ready to learn about the art of hospitality design with Longitude Branding?  Jeremy Wells is an independent hotelier, brand strategist, investor, and author who believes that true hospitality, thoughtfully-crafted experiences, and humble attitudes can change the world. In this episode, we talk about his journey from creative director and designer to independent hotelier and author. We dive...

How can we use technology to help make travel easier? Jacqueline Nunley is a Travel & Hospitality Industry Advisor at Salesforce. She is an experienced world traveler and got into the Hospitality Industry because of her love for travel. She has dedicated her career to making it easier to travel using technology. In this episode, we dig into how hoteliers can make travel easier for their guests...

Jessica Gillingham is a public relations expert in the hospitality and lodging space. She is the founder and CEO of Abode Worldwide, a public relations agency she launched in 2017 to focus on raising the profile of transformative technology solutions and enterprise operators in the global short-term rental, lodging, and living sectors. With over 20 years of experience in travel, hospitality, and t...

Jeanelle Johnson is a Principal, Lead Client Partner and Travel, Transportation and Hospitality (TTH) sector Co-Leader at PwC, focused on client service, industry perspective and research for the firm’s leading TTH clients. With nearly 25 years of experience at leading investment banking and consulting firms, Jeanelle’s passion is to help clients with strategic planning around their growth and inv...

Melinda Welch is a brand and experience strategy leader. She is the head of strategy at Brand Bureau , teaches branding at the School for Visual Arts and the Pratt Institute, and is the co-host of the BrandBox Podcast . Melinda is an expert in helping brands craft unique perspectives and connect deeply with their audience through design.  Throughout the episode, Melinda shares valuable insights in...

In today's episode, we speak with Nick Horgan, who is the CCO at Amaze Insights. We delve into the world of selling into hotels, technology adoption, and the importance of relationships in the hospitality industry. Nick shares his experiences, from working at NewMarket, to being a part of building a successful company and navigating acquisitions, to emphasizing the importance of integrity and repu...

Welcome back to another episode of The Modern Hotelier! Today, we're diving into the fascinating world of cannabis-focued travel and the evolving cannabis travel trend. Our guest, Brian Applegarth, is here to shed light on this growing industry and share his expertise on creating enriching experiences for cannabis enthusiasts. From cannabis consumption lounges to effect pairing methods, Brian cove...

Welcome back to The Modern Hotelier podcast! In today's episode, we explore the challenges & opportunities in the vacation rental industry with Dale Smith. Dale is the Founder & CEO of the SDDE Smith Group, a family business forming multiple brands that provide end-to-end client services for the real estate sector, from legal, to design, construction and ongoing life-cycle property managem...

In this informative discussion, we have two guests joining us, John Fay and Kris Herrin from BirchStreet. Join us as we dive deep into the world of payment processing and uncover valuable insights to help you optimize your payment systems. Whether you're a business owner, financial professional, or simply interested in understanding the intricacies of payment processing, this episode is a must-lis...

We're excited to bring you this special episode from HITEC 2023 in Toronto! During the week of HITEC, we sat down with hospitality professionals at GAIN's Night of Legends event at the Hockey Hall of Fame. We had a lot of fun with this one! In this episode you'll discover: The value of HITEC and why people keep coming back The most interesting and innovative technologies at HITEC Some new faces in...

Do you want to gain insights into the latest trends and advancements in the hospitality industry, specifically focused on Vacation Rentals? In this episode, we have a special guest speaker, Michael Friedman, the COO of Onefinestay in the Americas. Michael will share invaluable career insights gained from his vast experience in the field. We will also delve into how Hotels and Vacation Rental verti...

HITEC is just around the corner, and this week we have the perfect guest... In this episode, we have a special guest speaker, Neil Foster, the President of HFTP (HITEC, USALI). Neil shares invaluable career insights gained from his vast experience in the field. We will also delve into his journey in tourism, hospitality technology, and what led him to be the President of HFTP. In this episode, you...

In today’s episode, we talk about the dynamic world of hotel ownership, fair franchising, and legal advocacy in the travel industry. We have an amazing guest speaker, Laura Lee Blake, as she shares her wealth of knowledge and expertise accumulated over her impressive 25-year career. Laura Lee Blake is the President & CEO of AAHOA, the leading resource and advocate for Asian American hotel owne...

In this episode, we speak with Dina Belon, the  Chief Operating Officer at Staypineapple Hotels Inc. We dig into how StayPinapple's unique brand combines creativity, sustainability, and exceptional guest experiences to redefine hospitality.  In this episode, you'll discover:     • How StayPineapple is capitalizing on authenticity to create unique guest experiences     • How to get started with sus...