Allen Smith named president and chief executive of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts
Allen Smith has been appointed president and chief executive of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, six months after the sudden departure of his predecessor.
Currently chief executive of Prudential Real Estate Investors (PREI), Smith will join the luxury hotel company, which currently has 91 properties in 38 counties, on 23 September.
He will step into the shoes of Kathleen Taylor, who stepped down from running Four Seasons in February.
Four Seasons operates three hotels in the UK - two in London, on Park Lane and at Canary Wharf, and one in Hampshire. A fourth hotel is currently under development at Heron Plaza in the City of London.
The owners of Four Seasons - Kingdom Holding Company (headed by Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud), Bill Gates's Cascade Investment, and Triples Holdings, owned by the company's founder, Isadore Sharp - said they had conducted an extensive global search to make the new appointment.
Smith has been in charge of PREI, one of the world's largest real estate investment management firms, since 2008, having joined the company in 1987 as a member of its hotel investment group. Under his leadership, PREI expanded its global presence, which today holds $53b (£35b) in real estate assets under management, including many hotels. He holds a master's degree from Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration.
Sharp said that Smith shared the vision and values of Four Seasons and would complement the company's executive management team, as well as inspire its global employees around the world. "Allen has demonstrated a commitment to excellence and will ensure that Four Seasons further enhances its position as the world's leading luxury hotel brand," he added.
Smith added: "Having led a global real estate investment business, I am convinced there is no greater hotel brand and the market demand for Four Seasons around the world is enormous.
"This is a remarkable situation for me to leverage the complete range of skills developed over my career and it is an honour to help take one of the world's most admired companies to even greater heights and more great places.
"The chance to work with this group of owners, management and employees created what is truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
Sharp founded Four Seasons, which has its headquarters in Toronto, Canada, in 1960.
Kathleen Taylor steps down as chief executive of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts >>
