Aimbridge Hospitality Appoints Faisal Kamal General
Manager and
Tom Martone DOS for Embassy Suites Houston-Energy Corridor
HOUSTON
� (May 14, 2009) � When opening a new hotel, Aimbridge Hospitality, a Dallas-based
hotel real estate and management company, only hires the industry�s top
talent. As such, 19-year hospitality veteran Faisal Kamal has been named
General Manager and Tom Martone named to Director of Sales for the Embassy
Suites Houston (Texas) - Energy Corridor, scheduled to open in October.
The 216-room all-suite hotel is located along the Katy Freeway/I-10 at
the gateway to Houston�s �Energy Corridor;� home to many of Houston�s Fortune
500 companies and other local growth-oriented companies.
�This truly is an exciting time to join the Aimbridge Hospitality team
and reunite with the Embassy Suites brand as General Manager of the new
Embassy Suites Houston-Energy Corridor,� Faisal Kamal said. �Today,
while economic uncertainly is all around us, business in Houston�s famed
Energy Corridor is booming. With more than a million residents living in
West Houston and 450,000 persons employed by leading companies in the medical,
retail, technology, energy, engineering and service sectors, the Energy
Corridor is fast becoming the No. 1 place to live, work and stay.
�The only thing that could make this growing, viable business and residential
area any better is adding the spacious, upscale Embassy Suites brand to
the relatively stagnant hotel market,� he added. �There has been no full-service
hotel development in this area for at least 15 years. Hilton�s all-suite
concept is ideal because it provides international and domestic visitors
with �more of what they want� � an exceptional guest experience with stellar
accommodations and superior service.�
Kamal is no stranger to the Embassy Suites brand or to Houston. As
a resident of the �Space City,� he served as General Manager at the Embassy
Suites Galleria Houston from 2004 to 2007. He also held G.M. positions
with Ramada, Radisson, and Holiday Inn hotels. Most recently he served
as GM at the Hilton NASA Clear Lake in Houston. Kamal began his hospitality
career in 1991 as a restaurant cashier, and later held front office manager,
food-and-beverage manager, and general manager posts at hotels in Florida,
New York, Massachusetts, Kentucky and North/South Texas. In addition he
also serves as a board of director for the Hotel and Lodging Association
of Greater Houston.
�Faisal�s diverse hotel management background is a great asset to Aimbridge
Hospitality and to all properties under his direction,� said Dave Johnson,
president and CEO of Aimbridge Hospitality. �His experience with the Embassy
Suites brand, combined with his years of experience in hotel operations
will be instrumental in maintaining brand integrity and guest-service consistency.
With Faisal at the helm, we are confident that the Embassy Suites Houston-Energy
Corridor will be successful out of the gate. On behalf of Mac Haik and
all at Aimbridge Hospitality, we welcome him aboard.�
�Embassy Suites Hotels are widely recognized for providing �unparalleled
value� for Corporate, Meetings and Leisure travelers alike � a quality
that travel planners will be excited about in our West-Houston locale,�
Tom Martone said. �Hotel growth in the Westside/Energy Corridor
area has been stagnant over the past 12 to 15 years, and the traveling
consumer has been asking for something new and exciting. They don�t
have to wait much longer.
�We at Aimbridge Hospitality are especially excited to introduce this
property to the Houston market, and vow to deliver an exceptional guest
experience with stellar accommodation and superior service,� he added.
�The Embassy Suites Houston - Energy Corridor will be ideal for local business
persons seeking a quick spot to grab lunch and will also serve as a dynamic
destination for meeting planners and international business travelers.�
Martone noted that in 2008, Embassy Suites was recognized for an unprecedented
seventh time for JD Powers� annual award for �Highest Guest Satisfaction
Among Upscale Hotel Chains.� He said: �The Embassy Suites Houston � Energy
Corridor will do its part to continue the proud tradition here in Houston.�
Previously, Martone served as Associate Director of Sales for the Embassy
Suites Hotel-Phoenix-Scottsdale, a golf resort also managed by Aimbridge
Hospitality, a Dallas-based hotel real estate and management company that
provides renovation, supervision, accounting and consulting services for
its strategic partners. He also served as National Sales Manager for Ritz-Carlton
hotels in Phoenix and Rancho Mirage, Calif.; Director of National Accounts
for the Grenelefe Golf & Tennis Resort in Haines City, Fla.; and held
numerous sales and operations positions for Hyatt hotels in Los Angeles,
Orlando, and Houston.
The Embassy Suites-Energy Corridor hotel is owned by Mac Haik Enterprises,
a Houston-based investment company and parent company to Mac Haik Realty
LTD � the company responsible for approximately 1.7 million square feet
of office building and hotel development in the Energy Corridor. The 197,019
square-foot Houston Embassy Suites-Energy Corridor is part of an ongoing
development project that includes two office buildings: Energy Tower I
-- a 345,000 square-foot, 14-story building that is 100 percent leased,
and Energy Tower II -- a 450,532 square-foot, 17-story building that is
presently under construction and 90% pre-leased. Plans for an Energy Tower
III building, which would mirror Energy Tower II, are under consideration.
The property will feature spacious two-room suites (along with exclusive
club-level floors, almost 7,000 square feet of flexible meeting/function
space, a full-service restaurant and lounge, indoor pool with outdoor tanning
terrace, and fitness center with state-of-the-art Precor equipment. Guest
services include a complimentary full, cooked-to-order breakfast each morning
along with a nightly complimentary manager�s reception, local area transportation,
and much more.
�When we were selected by Mac Haik to manage the Embassy Suites Houston-Energy
Corridor, we knew that Tom Martone was the individual who could bring the
excitement and experience necessary to introduce this property to Houston,�
said Dave Johnson, Aimbridge Hospitality President and CEO. �His diverse
background and talents are a true asset to the Aimbridge Hospitality sales
team, and we are confident that he will quickly become an even more valuable
ally to the Houston hotel community.�
About Aimbridge Hospitality
Aimbridge Hospitality is one of the nation�s leading independent hotel
investment and management firms with a proven track record for delivering
superior returns for its strategic partners in a variety of markets and
economic cycles. Aimbridge provides management, asset management, development,
renovation and consulting services. Based in Dallas, Texas, Aimbridge currently
owns and/or manages 52 upscale, independent and branded hotels with nearly
11,000 rooms across the United States, including such affiliations as Marriott,
Hilton, Embassy Suites, DoubleTree, Hilton Garden Inn, Hampton Inn &
Suites, Aloft, Hyatt, Wyndham and the Phoenix Inn Suites chain of hotels.
For more information on Aimbridge Hospitality, please visit www.aimbridgehospitality.com.
About Mac Haik Enterprises
Mac Haik Enterprises is an investment company based in Houston, Texas,
which employs approximately 1,300 associates and has conducted in excess
of $880,000,000 in business in 2008. |