MINNEAPOLIS, Sept. 7, 2010 -  Carlson, a privately held, global hospitality and travel company, today announced the appointment of Christer Larsson as vice president of Food & Beverage for Carlson Hotels, The Americas. Larsson is responsible for driving the development and deployment of bar and restaurant concepts for owned and managed Carlson Hotels, and upon request, consulting with hotels licensed by Carlson Hotels' affiliates.

Larsson reports to Thorsten Kirschke, executive vice president and chief operating officer, Carlson Hotels, The Americas.
"This appointment of direct leadership for our Food & Beverage division strengthens our efforts in propelling our hotel brands further in their segment and reflects our commitment to achieving our Ambition 2015 objectives," said Kirschke.

Larsson's appointment supports Carlson Hotels' Ambition 2015 growth strategy, the company's initiative to expand its portfolio to more than 1,500 hotels around the world by 2015. Larsson has 30 years of experience in the hotel industry, working in chef, sous-chef and executive chef roles for the Westin Hotel Corporation, Hyatt Corporation and Aquavit in New York. He has also been a restaurateur, developing and operating Christer's Restaurant Group and, later, Alta Restaurant.

"Christer's proven success in food concept development and restaurant management makes him a strong asset to our team," added Kirschke.

Larsson returned to the hotel industry in 2005, taking a position as a consulting chef at Itchycoo Bar & Kitchen at the Radisson Blu Edinburgh in Scotland. He joined The Rezidor Hotel Group in 2005 as a consultant for Food & Beverage Brands and has acted as vice president of Rezidor's Food & Beverage division since 2009. In May, Carlson became the majority shareholder in The Rezidor Hotel Group.

About Carlson
Carlson is a privately held, global hospitality and travel company headquartered in Minneapolis, Minn. Carlson encompasses more than 1,075 hotels, including Radisson®, Country Inns & Suites By Carlson(SM), Park Inn® and Park Plaza®; more than 1,000 restaurants, including T.G.I. Friday's® and Pick Up Stix®; and a majority stake in Carlson Wagonlit Travel®, the global leader in business travel management. Carlson operates in more than 150 countries and its brands employ about 150,000 people. http://www.carlson.com