Mr. John Q. Hammons Receives Hospitality Industry’s Above & Beyond Award
Scott Tarwater, executive vice president of development for John Q. Hammons Hotels & Resorts, accepted the prestigious Above & Beyond Award on behalf of Mr. John. Q. Hammons. Mary Lou Koys, executive vice president of Lodging Unlimited, presented the award at The Lodging Conference 2009.
Mr. John Q. Hammons, a 51-year hospitality industry veteran, was recently honored with the prestigious Above & Beyond Award for his significant lodging industry and philanthropic endeavors. Mr. Hammons was recognized at a luncheon attended by nearly 1,100 hospitality executives as a part of The Lodging Conference 2009 at the Arizona Biltmore in Phoenix.
Scott Tarwater, executive vice president of development for John Q. Hammons Hotels & Resorts, accepted the Above & Beyond Award on behalf of Mr. Hammons and passed on the hospitality legend’s appreciation and wise counsel. Tarwater shared a statement from Mr. Hammons, including the comment: “Today, we’ve had a sad experience in oversupply of franchises being granted everywhere, and many developers without the right knowledge are having trouble. Remember this, you’ll never win unless you know the market first and select the best location. Otherwise, you can’t survive a mistake.”
Mr. Hammons is founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Springfield, Mo.-based John Q. Hammons Hotels & Resorts, the nation’s leading independent builder, developer, owner and manager of upscale, full-service hotels, resorts and suites (www.jqhhotels.com). His properties continue to typically outperform their competitive set and lead the brands in quality, service and financial performance under which they operate. Over the last five decades, Mr. Hammons has donated hundreds of millions of dollars to the city of Springfield and to other health, sports, education and cultural arts-related causes and organizations.
At age 90, Mr. Hammons continues to be focused on his passion of developing hotels and meeting space and has more than $1.5 billion in new construction in the pipeline, including several projects slated to open by 2010. He opened two hotels, a spa and conference center this year, bringing his career total to 208 hotels and 5.4 million gross square feet of meeting space spanning 40 states.
About John Q. Hammons Hotels & Resorts | Springfield, Mo.-based John Q. Hammons Hotels & Resorts is the nation’s leading independent builder, developer, owner and manager of upscale, full-service hotels, resorts and suites, including: Embassy Suites Hotels, Renaissance, Marriott, Radisson, Residence Inn, Homewood Suites by Hilton, Holiday Inn and Courtyard by Marriott brands. With 82 hotels strategically located near demand generators, such as state capitals, universities, airports, corporate headquarters or office parks in secondary and tertiary markets, John Q. Hammons Hotels & Resorts’ properties are dominant in their markets. Over the course of his impressive 51-year career in the hotel business, Mr. John Q. Hammons has developed 208 hotels. For more information about John Q. Hammons Hotels & Resorts, please visit the company’s Web site at www.jqhhotels.com.
