Owning and Operating Hotels Post Pandemic

Recently named a 2019 Top CEO by Glassdoor, Peter Strebel is president of Omni Hotels & Resorts where he continues to elevate the vision of Omni while insuring all operational areas within the company align with the long-term goals and objectives for the brand. A 30-year-plus veteran of the hospitality industry, he works with teams to continue to enhance the existing high-level of guest service as well as oversee the growth and expansion plans the brand has in the pipeline. The company’s former chief marketing officer and senior vice president of sales, Strebel was responsible for creating and driving innovative branding, communications, marketing and business development strategies to increase awareness, capture market share and build revenue for the luxury hotel brand. Strebel also formerly served as senior vice president of operations for the company where he oversaw the development of brand-wide property standards, guest rooms and other operational areas for the luxury hotel brand’s growing convention collection and resort portfolio. A long-term Omni veteran, Strebel rejoined Omni in 2009 as area managing director and general manager of the company’s flagship property in midtown Manhattan, the award-winning Omni Berkshire Place. During his previous tenure at Omni, he had a successful 10-year career in sales and marketing positions of increasing responsibility, ultimately leading to his appointment as vice president of sales and marketing. In between his time with Omni, Strebel served as executive vice president and chief marketing officer for the Wyndham Hotel Group and was promoted to president of the company before returning to Omni. Strebel serves on the board of directors for the Global Hotel Alliance. Peter graduated from Hofstra University with a Bachelor of Business Administration.

Jeffrey W. Binford, CHA is a Director in CBRE Hotels Consulting, a subsidiary of the CBRE Group, Inc. (NYSE:CBG) based in Dallas. Mr. Binford has over 40 years in the hospitality industry with diverse disciplines, including market feasibility, appraisal, franchise and management agreements, individual and multi-property management, asset management, and individual and mixed-use hospitality developments. Mr. Binford works with many clients as Advisor, Receiver, Property Manager and Asset Manager. Mr. Binford began his hospitality career operating full-service hotels under differing brand names, sizes and geographic locations. He was part of multiple pre-opening teams for hotels from 300–2,000 rooms, both as temporary and permanent management positions. His detailed understanding of operations coupled with his expertise in forecasting and budgeting, allows Binford to consistently achieve top profits and service scores. Prior to CBRE Hotels, Binford served as Managing Director of an international hospitality consulting firm, directly responsible for a portfolio of distressed assets. He also served as Vice President of Development for two large franchise and management organizations, responsible for franchising new-construction developments under multiple brands and soliciting third-party management agreements. His efforts resulted in multi-year awards for both quality and quantity franchise developments with highest per-unit sales. He also previously served as Senior Manager for Pannell Kerr Forster in Dallas. Mr. Binford personally worked on hundreds of hotels, valued well over $1 Billion with most industry brands, including Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Hilton, Marriott, Hyatt Hotels and Resorts, Choice Hotels and InterContinental Hotels Group. He has conducted market and economic feasibility studies, operational reviews and appraisals for hotels and resorts across the country. Binford has a Bachelor of Science degree from the Conrad N. Hilton College of Hotel Management at the University of Houston and earned the designation of Certified Hotel Administrator from the American Hotel and Lodging Association’s Educational Institute. Mr. Binford served on and chaired many public and private boards and is a frequent keynote speaker, guest lecturer and panelist before a number of industry-related educational institutions, associations and chambers of commerce.

Scott Lowe drives 5G’s award-winning success as an innovative, client-centric group of architects, project managers, designers and planners. He launched the firm in 2005 with partners Hoang Dang and Yen Ong, later joined by Jacob Tindall and Mike Voegtle. Scott is responsible for 5G’s overall business vision, design and development, including growth tactics and financials. Today, 5G has offices and clients worldwide, with assignments from the most acclaimed global brands. With continually award-winning achievement, 5G’s honors with Scott’s leadership include ranking on the Architect 50 Firms in both Business and Design among international firms with operations in the United States. With expert professionalism and acumen, Scott directs landmark, high-impact assignments across all business sectors, notably hospitality, retail, office and residential. He also is a Partner and Co-Founder in TLK Hospitality, a Development/Project Management Company managing such high-profile assignments as the Virgin Hotel in Dallas, Texas. Further, Scott is a Co-founding partner in the award-winning Ink + Oro ID group. One of his most notable involvements was in the highly acclaimed and world-renowned FORTY FIVE TEN store at Hudson Yards in New York. Scott is a champion for cultivating and motivating top design talent. He and his partners have built a firm that consistently brings a high degree of economic success for clients in the global marketplace. 5G’s growth and expansion from Dallas headquarters continues, with thriving offices in Atlanta, Miami, and Asia. A native of the Texas Panhandle, Scott holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Architecture from the University of Oklahoma. He is a LEED Accredited Professional and a member of the Sustainable Committee of the Urban Land Institute of North Texas. Scott is involved in several charitable organizations, local architectural/construction community education programs and the arts.  He is a sought after panelist for commentary and insights on the marketplace’s leading business topics. In 2019, Scott continued to be ranked among the Top CEOs in the North Texas region by D Magazine in the DCEO 500. Scott and 5G Studio also have been named DCEO’s 2020 honoree for Excellence in Architecture & Design in Dallas’ prestigious annual Commercial Real Estate Awards.

Kerri arrived at Bisnow after spending three years as a civil litigation attorney for the Law Offices of William Chu in the Dallas-Fort Worth area—and after working for more than a decade as a business journalist for two separate trade publications focused on commercial mortgage-backed securities and residential real estate. Kerri has spent her entire life in Dallas-Fort Worth and has watched the North Texas economy and real estate sector grow exponentially over the course of the past two decades. She remembers her hometown of Plano—once surrounded by empty fields of hay—morph into home to dozens of major corporate headquarters, retail developments, and luxury office complexes. A homegrown resident of Plano, Texas, Kerri is a graduate of Texas Tech University and the Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law. Kerri returned to business journalism (lucky for us, with Bisnow!) with a renewed interest in how commercial real estate development and population growth continue to reshape the Dallas area and surrounding suburbs.

Born and raised in South East London, Adam has always been a ken sportsman; representing his high school in Soccer, Rugby and Cricket. He started his working life as a Police Constable in Central London and then moved on to becoming a “Mens Grooming Expert” (which led to him appearing on The Times, The Telegraph, The Independent & GQ). This career path bought Adam to Dallas, Texas where he met his wife and decided to settle down. In Texas, Adam chose to start over or “re-tool”, and pursued a Management Degree at SMU. Once his studies were complete, Adam moved into sales of HVAC where he touched many commercial construction projects. Adam loves the thrill of new challenges, and meeting new people and can't wait to start his career with Bisnow in Dallas.