The Woods Cove Inn in Laguna Beach, owned by Blake Marriott and Spencer Samuelian, reopened last week following a sudden change in management.
The 22-room boutique hotel, formerly the Laguna Beach Inn, was previously overseen by Sonder Holdings Inc., which leased the inn from Marriott and Samuelian after the business partners purchased the motel in 2020 for $7.4 million, according to property records.
Last November, Sonder exited the property after filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy to wind down operations and liquidate the business. The decision was made after Marriott International terminated a previous licensing agreement with Sonder due to issues with integrating booking systems.
Marriott and Samuelian have now appointed Aliso Viejo-based Parable Hospitality, the newly launched management firm of Pacifica Hotel Group, to lead operations and marketing.
“Having operated as a lodging destination for more than a century, we believe it is uniquely positioned to thrive as an independent hotel,” Blake Marriott said in a statement.
Parable has appointed Didi Shields as general manager. Parable and Shields also oversee the Bay Shores Peninsula Hotel in Newport Beach, another recently renovated property owned by Marriott and Samuelian.
This week, room rates range from $300 to $426, according to its website.
Becoming Entrepreneurial
The 7,118-square-foot property, one block from the shoreline, first opened in 1929, according to CoStar.
Samuelian called Marriott about the rundown property when the Laguna Beach Inn first went up for sale and pitched their partnership.
At the time, Marriott – a grandson of Marriott Chairman Emeritus J.W. Marriott Jr. – was living in Maryland and working at his family’s company in operations and sales.
“I kind of thought he was crazy, but I wanted to hear him out and I had never done anything entrepreneurial before,” Marriott told the Business Journal.
He flew out to Laguna Beach and stayed at the motel, which was in disrepair.
“It felt like running into a burning house,” Marriott said. “But I loved the location, and I loved the potential.”
After the pair acquired the motel in 2020, they completed a sitewide renovation over the next few years and reopened it as Woods Cove Inn with Sonder in 2023.
In 2021, they bought the 25-room Bay Shores Peninsula Hotel, which reopened last November.
The Parable Story
Parable Hospitality launched in 2026 as the new management arm of Pacifica Hotel Group, founded and owned by the Marquis family.
Regional Director of Operations Mike Lerman said Parable was created to be an independent management and operating platform of Pacifica, giving the family a chance to focus on owning and developing more hotels.
He added that one catalyst was the President Scott Roby’s joining Pacifica in 2025.
“They wanted to let somebody bring this platform to the next level,” Lerman told the Business Journal.
Parable is now the operator for all Pacifica-owned properties and other hotel owners, like Spencer Samuelian and Blake Marriott.
The firm, still based in Aliso Viejo, manages over 30 hotels; two-thirds are owned by Pacifica.
Lerman added that properties such as Woods Cove Inn and Bay Shores Peninsula Hotel represent the growth Parable is after: “Bringing something special back to market with a new vision.”
