Twenty Four Seven Hotels is among local hospitality firms in growth mode, as the industry continues to see positive signs of recovery two years after the pandemic hit.
The Newport Beach company, founded in 2004 and with an executive team counting ties to local hospitality investor Tarsadia Hotels, is a service company for hotel investors, offering asset management and development services to owners of brands like Hilton and Marriott.
The company says it expects to add a half dozen newly built hotels this year; it currently counts a 25-property portfolio, with a room count topping 3,700 spread across California, Arizona, Nevada and Idaho. Â
Twenty Four Seven’s two local hotels are the Dana Point Marina Inn and SpringHill Suites by Marriott Anaheim Maingate. Together they count nearly 260 rooms.
Its first addition of the year was the 104-room Hilton Garden Inn in Temecula, which opened in March.
Operations Hire
The company’s chief executive is David Wani, while its president is Gary Gray; each had executive positions at Tarsadia before co-founding Twenty Four Seven.
The hotelier hired Amanda Hawkins-Vogel as the executive vice president of operations in January to help with the firm’s expansion plans.
An Australian native, Hawkins-Vogel counts nearly 30 years of hospitality experience from various stints in Korea, China, and the U.S. Â
“I started as a front desk agent, and now I don’t know anything else but hospitality,” Hawkins-Vogel told the Business Journal.
At Twenty Four Seven, Hawkins-Vogel is responsible for overseeing the firm’s portfolio and adding more hotels to that count.
Five additional hotels on tap for 2022 openings are in varying stages of development.
A Hampton Inn & Suites will open in Rancho Cucamonga this month; the other four properties will open this summer, including  a Hampton Inn in Monterey, a Hyatt House in Sacramento, a Hyatt Place in Newark and a Holiday Inn in Chino Hills.
“Because we are an approved operator experienced with all the major brands, it really opens the possibilities for us and our developers to choose the right branding for the right location,” Hawkins-Vogel said.
Hawkins-Vogel said she has been busy visiting the company’s existing portfolio to meet with general managers, regional directors, brand partners and investor groups.
Her goal is to manage existing properties and add to the portfolio, with even more openings on the books for the next few years.
“Development is risky and time consuming so there is always a possibility that a project may not proceed, but we are willing to commit our time and resources to assisting developers of good projects,” Hawkins-Vogel said.
PNW Plans
Hawkins-Vogel and her team are eyeing new markets as part of their expansion, specifically the Pacific Northwest, Colorado and Utah.
Leisure markets continue to lead industry demand, according to Hawkins-Vogel. She noted that California and Florida were among the earliest to recover in the wake of the pandemic.
In March, the company reported average occupancy at 75% for the hotels in its portfolio, and rising room rates have bolstered revenue for the firm in 2022.
“We’re feeling much better about our hospitality [industry],” Hawkins-Vogel said.
Leadership-in-Training Program
Most recently, Hawkins-Vogel was the senior VP of operations at Crescent Hotels & Resorts in Virginia; she held the same title prior at Denver-based Sage Hospitality.
Bringing her international experience to the Newport Beach management company, Hawkins-Vogel said she was drawn to the collaborative environment of Twenty Four Seven and its family of brands.
She plans to grow on this culture by launching a five-month leadership-in-training program to bolster career opportunities for the existing team of 1,200 people.
“We’re working on identifying at least half a dozen mid-level managers and inviting them to the program,” she said. “I have a responsibility to lead the next generation, to teach and mentor.”Â
