September 25, 2012 (Asheville,
NC) - Under
the ownership of KSL Partners, The Grove Park Inn in Asheville, North Carolina,
has
appointed a new sales team. Recently acquired by KSL, the historic
resort
restructured its sales division welcoming new and rehired members while
also
redistributing territories. The nine-member sales team is being led by
Tryg
Brody, who joined The Grove Park Inn as Director of Sales in April
2012. Brody previously led the sales team at Hotel Del Coronado, served
as
Executive Director of Group Sales at The Greenbrier Hotel, as Vice
President of
Wynn Company and served as Sales Manager at The Homestead. Brody
received his
undergraduate degree at Wake Forest University and his masters degree
at Ohio
University.The Grove Park Inn offers 55,000-square-feet of meeting and event space. Under the Director of Sales, Tryg Brody, the Sales and Catering team and their revised territories include:
- Megan Zemnick - Director of Catering & Conference Services since July 2012. Zemnick was previously a Senior Consultant at Cap Gemini Ernest and Young, Corporate Management Trainee at Hyatt Regency Louisville, Catering Manager at Hyatt Regency Coral Gables, Director of Event Planning and Catering Sales at Renaissance Esmeralda Resort and Director of Catering at La Coasta Resort. She received a Bachelor of Science at the University of Arizona.
- Chris Sessions - National Sales Manager since July 2012. Sessions was previously the Director of National Accounts at Pinehurst Resort. He received his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Marketing from Coastal Carolina University. At the resort, he will oversee the Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Hawaii, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Southern Virginia, and West Virginia territories.
- Anesa Martin - National Sales Manager since October 2011. Martin was previously a Senior Sales Manager at Grand Hyatt Atlanta and Hyatt Regency Atlanta. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from Baruch College, CUNY. Martin will oversee the Florida, Georgia and South Carolina territories.
- Anna Smathers - Executive Meetings Manager since September 2011. Smathers was previously a Travel Sales Consultant for Viking travel, Sales Assistant and Meetings Express Assistant and Corporate Travel Coordinator at The Grove Park Inn. She received a Bachelor of Science in Recreation Management from Appalachian State University. Smathers' new territories include Western North Carolina (area codes 828, 704, 336), Alabama, Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, and Washington.
- John Boyle - Executive Meetings Manager since August 2007. Boyle was previously Restaurant Supervisor at The Sunset Terrace and now manages Executive Meetings for the Grove Park Inn. New territories for Boyle include Eastern North Carolina (area codes 919, 910, 252), Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
- Brittany Beckwith - National Sales Manager since 2006. Beckwith graduated from Appalachian State University, is a Certified Meeting Professional, a member of ASAE and PCMA and is the current Chairman of the Asheville CVB Group Business Development Team. Beckwith is charged with all national, international and regional associations
- Tina Porter - Golf Sales & Events Manager since 2006. Porter was also a Sales Manager from 2005-2006. Porter was previously the Buyer/Shop Manager at The Grove Park Inn, Merchandiser at Ashworth INC, Sales Manager at Great Smokies Holiday Sunspree Resort and Director of Sales and Marketing at Doubletree Biltmore Hotel. She received a Business Administration undergraduate from Middle Tennessee State University. Poter's focus will be North Carolina territories.
- Michael Unanue - National Sales Manager since July 2005. Unanue has worked at The Grove Park Inn since 2001 in numerous roles including Front Desk Agent, Housekeeping Building Supervisor, Housekeeping Building Manager and now as his current role on the sales team. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from the State University of New York at Buffalo. Responsibilities will include state associations, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Northern VA, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, Wyoming and International leads.
KSL Partners acquired The Grove
Park Inn on May
1, 2012. The Grove Park Inn became the third National Historic Landmark
property in the KSL collection, joining the ranks of two other iconic
hotels,
The Del Coronado in CA and The Homestead in VA. Founded in
1992,
KSL Resorts manages nine time-honored resorts with outstanding
recreational
amenities including spa, golf, tennis and ski. Each is refined yet
unpretentious, rich in legacy and genuine in service. The AAA
Four-Diamond
Grove Park Inn will undergo a $25 million dollar restoration and
renovation,
half to be completed by the end of 2012, to coincide with The Inn's
centennial.
For more information, please contact The Grove Park Inn at 800-438-5800
or
828-252-2711; visit www.groveparkinn.com, or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ewgrove
and Facebook at www.facebook.com/groveparkinn
About KSL Capital Partners
KSL is a private equity firm specializing in travel and leisure enterprises in five primary sectors: hospitality, recreation, clubs, real estate and travel services. KSL has offices in Denver, Colorado and New York. KSL’s current portfolio includes some of the premier properties in travel and leisure, including The Grove Park Inn, The Homestead, Montelucia Resort & Spa, Barton Creek Resort & Spa, Rancho Las Palmas Resort & Spa, The Royal Palm, La Costa Resort and Spa, and ClubCorp, one of the world’s largest owners of private golf and business clubs. KSL also owns other premier recreation businesses, including Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows, two of the leading ski resorts in North America; Western Athletic Clubs, the owner and operator of luxury fitness clubs on the West Coast of the United States; and Orion Expedition Cruises, a luxury expedition cruise operator based in Sydney, Australia.
For more information on KSL, please visit www.kslcapital.com.
About KSL Capital Partners
KSL is a private equity firm specializing in travel and leisure enterprises in five primary sectors: hospitality, recreation, clubs, real estate and travel services. KSL has offices in Denver, Colorado and New York. KSL’s current portfolio includes some of the premier properties in travel and leisure, including The Grove Park Inn, The Homestead, Montelucia Resort & Spa, Barton Creek Resort & Spa, Rancho Las Palmas Resort & Spa, The Royal Palm, La Costa Resort and Spa, and ClubCorp, one of the world’s largest owners of private golf and business clubs. KSL also owns other premier recreation businesses, including Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows, two of the leading ski resorts in North America; Western Athletic Clubs, the owner and operator of luxury fitness clubs on the West Coast of the United States; and Orion Expedition Cruises, a luxury expedition cruise operator based in Sydney, Australia.
For more information on KSL, please visit www.kslcapital.com.