AS SEEN IN: Hotelmanagement.net | By Jena Tesse FoxJune 3, 2021 | Link to full article

Veteran hotel executives, investment bankers and capital partners (consisting of limited partnership and general partnership equity for hotel asset and hospitality company acquisitions) have formed a new hotel partnership.

Victory Hotel Partners will consist of multiple entities under its umbrella. Victory Hospitality, through a joint venture with Equis Hotels, will focus on branded midscale and upscale assets, providing consulting services for all aspects of hotel operations, management, receivership, business development, acquisitions, project management and repositioning of assets. Hay Creek Hotels, in which VHP has taken a majority position, offers an operating and investment platform with a focus on independent and boutique hotels that are strategically located in high barriers to entry and drive-in regional destination markets. 

“However, I couldn’t think of a more appropriate time to help position Victory Hotel Partners as the white knight to troubled and distressed owners, operators and lenders to offer hope and possibilities. I am delighted to be re-united with former colleagues and to lend my support to a most talented team of executives as they lead the day-to-day activities of the company.”

Greg Mount, former CEO of Red Lion Hotels, is the co-founder and partner of Victory Hotel Partners. “I was cautiously optimistic about embarking on this endeavor amid the chaos and uncertainty our world is facing coming out of this pandemic, especially in the travel and hospitality sector,” he said in a statement. “However, I couldn’t think of a more appropriate time to help position Victory Hotel Partners as the white knight to troubled and distressed owners, operators and lenders to offer hope and possibilities. I am delighted to be re-united with former colleagues and to lend my support to a most talented team of executives as they lead the day-to-day activities of the company.” 

Hay Creek Hotels—a company with a portfolio of 23 hotels, 18 restaurants, four spas and two golf courses—will continue to be led by its founder, Norman MacLeod, a hotelier for over 35 years, as well as Gary Sims, another industry executive and active partner in VHP, serving as COO. “I am thrilled to be affiliated and aligned with such a powerful collection of industry experts and successful capital partners that will provide strategic guidance, capital and ultimately substantial growth, acting alongside owners,” MacLeod said.

The founding team’s experience covers finance, accounting, sales and marketing, media and communications, technology, revenue management, operations, project management and design.  “The Victory name was inspired by our determination to win at the highest level against all odds and many obstacles,” Mount said. “The companies that can adapt to protect people while still building the best customer experience will be victorious and accelerate much faster out of this downturn. We are making great strides getting back to business, seeing travel begin to flourish once again, and we will overcome and succeed as an industry, an industry that this team loves and is most passionate about.”