Virgin Hotels Announces New Vice President of Development

- MIAMI, March 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Virgin Hotels, the lifestyle hotel brand by Richard Branson, welcomes Alex Andjel as the new Vice President of Development.  Andjel, who is located in London, will oversee the brand's expansion into Europe. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160330/349847  "Virgin is such a global brand, synonymous with being the consumer champion through its uncompromising focus on service quality, innovation, fun and value for money. I'm extremely proud to lead our European expansion as we look to grow the portfolio in the key gateway cities that you might expect and some you wouldn't." Andjel will work closely with capital partners and strategic investors to acquire new and existing properties in cities across Europe. Hoping to acquire two or three properties per year, the brand is keeping options open, targeting cities from London, Paris and Rome to less-predictable locations like Istanbul, Manchester, Edinburgh and Dublin. Allie Hope, Head of Development and Acquisitions commented, "Alex will be a key resource as we expand Virgin Hotels into Europe. His vast experience and knowledge of the markets in Europe and the Middle East will prove to be incredibly valuable. We're excited to have him on board." Andjel most recently served as Vice President of Development for YOTEL, focusing on Europe, the Middle East and Asia. Prior to this, he was Director of Montpelier Hotels Ltd., a hospitality investment and corporate finance advisory firm and Director of Development for Bridgehouse Capital, a private equity company with total assets in excess of $1 billion. More recently, he spent five years with Orient-Express Hotels Ltd. where he managed more than $500 million of acquisition, financing and dispositions of non-core assets. He successfully executed third party hotel management agreements for OEH in London and North American (Cadogan Hotel, Durley House and The Inn at Perry Cabin). Virgin Hotels Chicago is now open and accepting reservations at virginhotels.com, with Nashville slated for 2017 and New York, Palm Springs and Dallas for 2018. Virgin Hotels continues to explore hotel and office conversions as well as ground-up development in cities such as Boston, Los Angeles, Miami, Austin, Seattle, San Francisco, Washington DC, and London.