New Orleans, LA (March 6, 2012)— Brett Forshag, an accomplished New Orleans hotel veteran, has joined HRI Lodging as Vice President of Sales, announced Gary Gutierrez, President of the company.

“Brett’s in-depth industry knowledge and fundamental sales skills are instrumental in building long lasting relationships with nationwide customers,” said Gutierrez. “His ability to mentor, train and communicate with sales associates is the foundation for creating an award-winning sales culture,” Gutierrez added.

A native of New Orleans, Forshag joins HRI Lodging with 23 years of hotel sales experience. He has worked for several hotel companies in New Orleans, including Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, ITT Sheraton, and most recently Starwood Hotels & Resorts.

Forshag served as Director of Group Sales with Starwood for 12 years and successfully led five of his sales teams to National Hotel Sales Team of the Year. He was later promoted to Director of Sales at the Sheraton New Orleans Hotel and focused on clustering Starwood’s assets in the region and the $45 million renovation of the Sheraton New Orleans Hotel.

Forshag is a graduate of LSU, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and played on the 1985 LSU baseball team, which won the 1985 SEC Baseball Championship under legendary coach Skip Bertman. He is a member of the Jesuit High School President’s Advisory Committee and the Christian Brothers School Foundation Board.

About HRI Properties
HRI Lodging operates hotel properties in New Orleans, LA; Shreveport, LA; Jackson, MS and Richmond, VA. HRI Lodging hotels include the restored D.H. Holmes department store in New Orleans, which this year was renovated as the Hyatt French Quarter. Other historic properties include the restored King Edward Hotel in Jackson, MS and the Miller & Rhoads department store in Richmond, VA, both of which fly the Hilton Garden Inn flag. HRI Lodging’s other hotels are the Shreveport Hilton adjacent to the Convention Center in downtown Shreveport and the Hotel New Orleans, being transformed into the city’s first Hyatt Place. For more information, go to www.hrilodging.com.
 
Based in New Orleans, HRI Properties (HRI) is a full-service real estate development company and a national leader in the adaptive reuse of historic structures. HRI’s mission is revitalizing cities by creating diverse, vibrant, sustainable communities. For more information, go to www.hriproperties.com.