Luis Fernandes, Senior Vice President of Hotel Operations for Kor Hotel Group, the Los Angeles-based hotel, real estate development and management firm, is pleased to announce four new senior management appointments to the company's growing assets in Mexico:

  • Julián Smaldoni appointed General Manager of The Tides Riviera Maya
  • Cupertino Ortiz appointed Executive Chef of The Tides Riviera Maya
  • Omar Said appointed General Manager of Villa del Sol
  • Cristina Romero-Peri appointed Area Director of Sales for Mexico, based in Los Angeles office.

"Each of these individuals represents a valuable new component in our expansion efforts for Mexico," said Fernandes in making the announcement. "They each have worked at some of the very best, high-profile resorts throughout the region and know the market and clientele well."

  • Julián Smaldoni joins Kor Hotel Group as General Manager of The Tides Riviera Maya with 14 years of experience in the hotel industry, including work with such distinguished hotel chains as Hyatt, Gala and Camino Real, through which he has obtained expert knowledge of the Latin upscale-hospitality market. Most recently he was General Manager of Quinta Real Huatulco for two years, a high-end boutique resort comprised exclusively of 28 suites and 15 luxury villas. Previously, he worked for Gala Resorts & Hotels at two of the company's five-diamond all-inclusive resorts, in Huatulco and Playacar, holding a variety of senior management positions including Food & Beverage Assistant Manager, Sports & Entertainment Assistant Manager and Resident Manager. Smaldoni holds a Tourism Administration degree from the University of Mar del Plata in Argentina and has completed numerous courses in the School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University. An active member of industry associations, he has served as Vice President of the Huatulco Hotels Association and President of Huatulco's Marketing Committee.
  • Cupertino Ortiz brings to his position as Executive Chef at The Tides Riviera Maya a distinguished career working in the kitchens of some of Mexico's most superior resorts. Most recently he was Executive Sous Chef at the highly acclaimed, five-star One&Only Palmilla resort in Los Cabos for four years, working under Chef Larbi Dahrouch. In addition to his oversight of all fine dining venues, menu creation and dining courses, he also participated in "Train the Trainer" and Sommelier Training seminars. Prior to this, Ortiz worked at Rosewood's five-diamond Las Ventanas al Paraiso, also in Los Cabos, quickly ascending through a series of positions from Line Cook to Executive Sous Chef in his five years at the property. Ortiz began his culinary career at age 16, working as a ook at the French-Mexican Acapulco Gro restaurant. Now at The Tides Riviera Maya, he brings his special flare for Mediterranean cuisine made "healthy and light with the fresh scent of local Mexican ingredients" to "unite taste with culture" through the menu at Azul restaurant.
  • Omar Said joins Kor Hotel Group as General Manager of Villa del Sol with 13 years of experience in high-end hotel operations and residential property management with The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, holding senior management positions at AAA Five Diamond properties in the United States, Mexico and the Caribbean. Most recently he was Regional Director of Residences for the company, responsible for corporate oversight at four condominium properties at The Ritz-Carlton Sarasota and The Ritz-Carlton Dallas. He has also served as a corporate trainer for the openings of Ritz-Carlton properties in San Juan, New York's Central Park, Boston and elsewhere. Prior to this corporate experience, he spent two years at The Ritz-Carlton's residential hotel in St. Thomas as Executive Assistant Manager of Rooms, where he helped to increase spa and recreation revenues significantly and to earn the resort top ratings in leading regional travel publications. Said began his career at the Sheraton Maria Isabel Hotel in Mexico City, before joining the opening team of The Ritz-Carlton in Cancun and later in Dearborn.
  • Cristina Romero-Peri brings to her position as Area Director of Sales a wealth of experience in Mexico's luxury-hospitality market. Most recently she spent seven years as Director of Sales and Marketing for Las Ventanas al Paraiso, Rosewood's five-diamond resort in Los Cabos. Prior to that, she held the position of Vice President of Sales and Marketing for the much anticipated re-opening of the One&Only Palmilla Resort, also located along the Los Cabos corridor. Before bringing her expertise to Mexico, Romero-Peri headed the sales offices of L'Ermitage Hotel in Beverly Hills and Le Dufy Hotel in Los Angeles. She has also worked as a Sales Manager at the Mondrian Hotel and the Sunset Marquis, both in West Hollywood. Romero-Peri will be based out of Kor's corporate office in Los Angeles.

Interview arrangements and high-resolution headshots are available upon request. Please contact Kor Hotel Group or Hawkins International at the numbers listed above.

About Kor Hotel Group | The Kor Group is a privately held real estate development and management firm with investments primarily in hotels, resorts and multi-family real estate. Kor Hotel Group, the hospitality division of Kor, holds a diverse property portfolio and manages both its own assets and non-owned hotels under third-party management agreements. Kor Hotel Group's properties include Viceroy Santa Monica and Viceroy Palm Springs, Avalon Hotel and Maison 140 in Beverly Hills, The Tides South Beach, Chamberlain in West Hollywood, Loden in Vancouver, The Tides Riviera Maya on the Yucatán Peninsula and Villa del Sol in Zihuatanejo on the Mexican Riviera. Resorts and Residences projects in Miami, Anguilla and Riviera Maya are forthcoming in 2008 and 2009.