logo

Cory Hagopian has been promoted Senior Vice President, Global Partnerships at Virtuoso

Hospitality Net07-05-2025

Virtuoso, the global leader in luxury and experiential travel, continues to see record growth across the nine regions worldwide in which it operates. With an eye toward better serving the varied needs of its rapidly expanding member and partner base, the company is announcing changes within its Senior Leadership Team and a strategic realignment designed to reflect Virtuoso's consistent focus on shaping the future of luxury travel.
Virtuoso executive Cory Hagopian will evolve his role to senior vice president, global partnerships. Since joining the organisation in 2022, Hagopian has led both member and partner relationships worldwide. He will now solely focus his efforts on driving Virtuoso's global partner sales strategy and developing relationships across all product categories, including hotels and resorts, cruise lines, tourism boards, alliances, tour operators, air, car services and insurance as well as Virtuoso's new Ultra-High-Net-Worth vertical. This sales strategy will focus on increasing value to current global partners, while also developing new partnerships in emerging destinations.
As Virtuoso continues to expand its partnerships and product offerings, it remains committed to maintaining the highest quality and standards. This move is part of a broader globalisation strategy aimed at establishing regional partnership teams to better engage with and support Virtuoso's partners around the world.
Hagopian's position is effective immediately, and he will remain based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Guest Experience: 10 Do's and Don'ts for a Great Guest Experience Strategy
Guest Experience: 10 Do's and Don'ts for a Great Guest Experience Strategy

Hospitality Net

time2 days ago

  • Hospitality Net

Guest Experience: 10 Do's and Don'ts for a Great Guest Experience Strategy

If there's one takeaway for 2025, it's this: Guest experience isn't a department – it's a mindset. To deliver exceptional moments, guest satisfaction must sit at the core of every decision, across every department. From front desk to finance, marketing to maintenance – every action should be viewed through the lens of its impact on the guest. Want real transformation? Make guest satisfaction more than a KPI – make it a culture. If guest experience doesn't come up in every leadership meeting, you're missing the point. It's not about chasing trends or mimicking your compset. Memorable experiences are built through emotional connection, authenticity, and a deep understanding of your guests' evolving needs. Guests want more than a bed – they want a story, a feeling, a sense of belonging. When you design moments that matter, you don't just earn loyalty – you create advocates. Here are 10 guiding principles 'Do's and Don'ts' for a guest experience strategy that actually delivers: Do's to Deliver Great Guest Experiences: ✅ DO Treat guest satisfaction as a core metric. Every time you implement a new initiative (i.e. digital dining, upselling, automated check-in) don't just measure revenue or conversion. Ask: Did this enhance the guest experience? Did we move the satisfaction needle? ✅ Make guest intelligence relevant to every team. From housekeeping to F&B, tailor insights to be digestible and actionable. Empower teams to act on what they learn, not just observe from a distance. ✅ Push your vendors to be partners, not just providers. Ask them where guest intelligence is heading and how AI will shape experience. Choose partners who guide and evolve with you, not just those who tick a box. ✅ Stay plugged into product roadmaps and industry webinars. Hospitality tech moves fast. Tomorrow's winning experiences are being built today. Stay informed, curious, and engaged - it's not just sales fluff, it's your edge. ✅ Use AI for review responses, but keep it human. AI can support scale and consistency, but your brand voice still matters. Train it to reflect your tone. Tech should elevate your authenticity, not dilute it. ✅ Hire and train for emotional intelligence. Guests remember how you made them feel. EQ-driven teams read cues, respond with empathy, and create moments that stick. That's the secret sauce. ✅ Create local, brand-authentic experiences. From a curated neighborhood guide to a scent inspired by the region, guests crave stories, not sameness. These emotional touches forge deeper connections. ✅ Monitor your compset, but think beyond it. Benchmarking is important, but inspiration lives everywhere – retail, wellness, entertainment. The best ideas often come from outside hospitality. ✅ Build a communication strategy for the entire guest journey. Use email, SMS, WhatsApp, chat AI, and in-room tech to support – not interrupt. Be proactive, seamless, and human. Anticipate needs. Build trust. ✅ Make space for magic, surprise, and delight. A handwritten note. A Spotify playlist. Remembering their favorite drink. These moments create stories guests tell long after checkout. That's real hospitality. Don'ts – What to Avoid in Guest Experience:

Cloud-Native Wellness ERP: IDS Next Invites a New Era in Wellness Management
Cloud-Native Wellness ERP: IDS Next Invites a New Era in Wellness Management

Hospitality Net

time3 days ago

  • Hospitality Net

Cloud-Native Wellness ERP: IDS Next Invites a New Era in Wellness Management

Wellness and spa offerings have become increasingly vital to enhancing guest experiences and driving profitability within the hospitality industry. Statista revealed the global health and wellness market is estimated to reach almost seven trillion U.S. dollars by 2025, with EHL Insights anticipating that the global medical spa market will reach US$45 Billion by 2030. As health and wellness offerings and personalised experiences become more integral to travel and tourism, the wellness sector is evolving at an unprecedented pace. In response to this growing demand, IDS Next delivers smart enterprise resource planning solutions not only for hotels, restaurants, banquets and leisure sectors but also for the wellness vertical, with a suite of innovative solutions designed to elevate operations. At the core of this is FX Spa, a spa management system with standout features: roster management, appointment handling, guest profile management for enhanced personalisation, and comprehensive reporting to drive smarter operations. The simplified billing system automatically shows completed appointments, allowing for multiple payment settlements, loyalty rewards, discount coupons, and gift card redemptions with ease. With support for guest bookings, multi-day and family appointments, and configurable forms and packages, FX Spa offers unmatched flexibility tailored for both traditional spas and modern wellness centres. FX Spa also shines in its seamless integration capabilities. It connects natively with IDS Next's FX Front Office Management and FX Finance modules, as well as third-party platforms, including Oracle's Opera PMS and SAP, enabling true cross-functional visibility and automation. Beyond FX Spa, IDS Next's comprehensive wellness suite supports the full ecosystem of spa operations, covering material management, front office, finance, guest engagement, housekeeping, and managing data for instant insights, analysis and operational visibility. This cloud-native, mobile-first platform empowers wellness operators with a complete, scalable toolkit for business growth. IDS Next's CRO, Rajesh Yadav, added his thoughts on the company's venture into the wellness sector. 'The pandemic and the consequent preference for health, wellness, and self-care were major catalysts for changes in guest behaviour. Moving forward, businesses cannot rely on accommodation and F&B alone to satisfy this change in demand patterns. With that in mind, IDS Next is proud to support businesses in delivering a holistic hospitality experience; one that joins the traditional hospitality with innovative wellness solutions' . 'Wellness continues to shape guest expectations, and we are proud to offer comprehensive tools that enhance operational efficiency and drive profitability, ensuring our customers are well-equipped for success in this new era of hospitality', added Manoj K Mohanty, Senior Vice President – Sales, South Asia and Southeast Asia. As the wellness sector continues to thrive, IDS Next is committed to our continuing journey of empowering businesses with the tools needed to adapt to the evolving demands, well-positioned to support the growth of the wellness industry and drive continued success for its customers. About IDS Next With a global presence in 50+ countries, IDS Next offers cloud-native and mobile-first full-stack ERP solutions for hotels, restaurants, wellness, banquets and events sectors. Seamlessly integrating with 350+ world-class technology partners, we leverage industry expertise and a customer-centric approach to deliver SaaS solutions that keep clients competitive in an ever-evolving global market. Today, we are trusted by renowned hospitality brands, including ITC Hotels, Taj Hotels, Kaya Kalp, Jiva Spa, and Antara Senior Living. For more information, visit View source

Amber Asher has been appointed Member of the Board of Directors at Lark Hotels
Amber Asher has been appointed Member of the Board of Directors at Lark Hotels

Hospitality Net

time3 days ago

  • Hospitality Net

Amber Asher has been appointed Member of the Board of Directors at Lark Hotels

Lark, the premium development and management company encompassing multiple boutique hospitality brands, announces the appointment of boundary-pushing hospitality leader, Amber Asher, to its board of directors. A recognized force in lifestyle hospitality, Asher brings decades of experience scaling bold, design-driven hotel brands and leading transformative growth strategies. Asher joins Lark's Founder and Chairman, Rob Blood; CEO, Peter Twachtman; and Creative Director, Megan Kennedy; as well as Mike Scott, Managing Partner at Thayer Investment Partners, on the board. Asher served as CEO of Standard International, where she oversaw the global expansion of The Standard, Bunkhouse, The StandardX, and Peri hotel brands, growing the company from four U.S. hotels to a portfolio of 24 properties worldwide with over 30 hotels and 7 branded residences in development. Under her leadership, the company achieved 400% topline revenue growth from 2019 to 2024, resulting in a landmark sale to Hyatt Hotels Corporation for up to $335 million. ​​Recognized among the 50 Most Important Women in Travel (Wonderlust), 100 Most Influential in Global Hospitality (IHI), and Skift's Women Shaping the Future of Travel, Amber received the 2022 Independent Lodging Congress "Start Something Award." She has been featured in publications including Forbes, Elle, Skift, Business Insider, HOTELS, and Condé Nast Traveler. Founded in 2012, Lark's branded hotel collections include its signature Lark Hotels, Bluebird by Lark, Blind Tiger Guest House, AWOL, and Life House. The group also manages independent hotels throughout the country and across a diverse range of markets. Lark combines a tech-forward ethos, hands-on development expertise, and people-first culture to maximize profitability for small to mid-sized hotels. In 2024, seven Lark properties were awarded prestigious Michelin Keys from Michelin Guide, a coveted honor that recognizes the country's most outstanding hotels. Lark's most recent openings were The Bow Hotel, a reimagined hotel tucked within a historic warehouse in Portsmouth, and AWOL Stowe, the third location of its emerging AWOL brand in the heart of Stowe, Vermont, complete with an outdoor Nordic spa deck and free-standing A-frame cabins. Most recently, the brand's growth accelerated rapidly in late 2024 upon forming a joint venture with contextual hotel brand and operator, Life House.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store