Global Hotel Alliance (GHA), the largest international alliance of independent hotel brands, encompassing more than 500 hotels across 35 brands in 85 countries, has bolstered its management team with two senior-level appointments.

Franck Kermarrec comes on board as Chief Commercial Officer and Nicolas le Roux assumes the newly created role of Head of Marketing and Digital Strategy.

Kermarrec and le Roux will be based at the alliance’s headquarters in Dubai and report to GHA’s CEO, Chris Hartley, as part of the senior management team. GHA has a vast UAE portfolio, which includes 23 properties across seven brands – Anantara Hotels, Resorts & Spas, Avani Hotels & Resorts, JA Resorts and Hotels, Kempinski Hotels, Mysk Hotels, Nikki Beach Hotels & Resorts and Oaks Hotels, Resorts & Suites.

Responsible for GHA’s strategic growth and accelerating the company’s development plans, Kermarrec will initially be focusing on growing the portfolio of brands and partners across all geographies.

Kermarrec brings to the role extensive hospitality industry experience, having worked in Europe, North America, and Australia. After 10 years in strategy consulting across a wide range of sectors, he moved to the travel and hospitality industry, holding senior roles at IHG and Hertz, before moving to Millennium Hotels as Group Chief Marketing Officer and most recently as Chief Operating Officer at Atlas Hotels.

Originally from France, Kermarrec holds an MSc in Management - majoring in Strategy and Corporate Finance from Emlyon (France) - as well as an Executive MBA from INSEAD (France/Singapore).

Starting April 1, 2022, Nicolas le Roux will focus on generating GHA revenues through the reimagined GHA DISCOVERY loyalty programme, leveraging the alliance’s extensive customer database, optimising the loyalty programme’s digital presence, and driving higher member engagement.

Le Roux will be responsible for leading the marketing team, encompassing owned channels including email, push, website, app, and social media, along with branding and positioning, design, and content strategy. His key responsibilities will cover GHA DISCOVERY customer acquisition, activation, engagement, experience, and analytics.

Originally from South Africa, le Roux started his career in account management and events, gained experience at the Travel Corporation, and was then appointed Head of Marketing for Travelport in MEA & South Asia. In his most recent role as Chief Marketing Officer at Mondia Group, he focused on strategic positioning in the mobile tech industry to act as a key partner to optimise profitability and win market share, while leveraging the end-user experience.

Le Roux holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and an IMM diploma in Marketing from the Graduate School of Marketing in Johannesburg.

“I am very excited to fill these two crucial positions with exceptional talents. Now that the hospitality industry is finally starting to recover from the pandemic, our focus is on continuous growth,” said GHA CEO Chris Hartley.

“With new brands such as Sun International, which joined the alliance in February 2022, and NH Hotels joining in Q2 2022, our hotel portfolio will increase to more than 800 properties in 100 countries worldwide. Franck and Nic will be responsible for championing the value of joining the alliance and the benefits of our reimagined GHA DISCOVERY programme to independent hotel brands, as well as future members. With their extensive experience in the travel space and proven track record delivering results, Franck and Nic are a great fit for us.” 

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