Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 25th January 2010- Lama Semaan has been appointed Director of Catering and Sales Events at The Westin Dubai and Le Meridien Mina Seyahi Beach Resort and Marina Complex and brings her knowledge of sales and background in catering to this role.

Originally from Lebanon, Lama gained valuable experience at the Turquoise Aquamarina Mikana Catering Company Lama where she held the title of Outlet manager, in charge of banqueting implementation, recruiting, menu development and cost control and she was Assistant Food and Beverage Manager at both Da Giovanni and Sorrento Italian Restaurants, Bamboo Bay and Oceana Beach Resorts, based in Lebanon.

Relocating to the UAE in June 2006, Lama was appointed Wedding and Sales Manager at the 5 Star Millennium Hotel before moving onto becoming Assistant Director of Conference and Events at Al Murooj Rotana, Dubai. In January 2009, Lama joined the Starwood team as Director of Conventions at the W Hotel, Qatar. With 1,000 square metres of event spaces and studios Lama's responsibilities at this premium property included event organisation, menu planning, contract creation and negotiation as well as tracking and statistic co-ordination.

She is fluent in Arabic, English and French and welcomes the opportunity to develop her experience within the hospitality industry in this challenging an exciting new role.

-Ends-

About Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. is one of the leading hotel and leisure companies in the world with approximately 900 properties in more than 100 countries and 155,000 employees at its owned and managed properties. Starwood Hotels is a fully integrated owner, operator and franchisor of hotels and resorts with the following internationally renowned brands: St. Regis®, The Luxury Collection®, Sheraton®, Westin®, Four Points® by Sheraton, W®, Le Méridien® and the recently announced AloftSM and ElementSM Hotels. Starwood Hotels also owns Starwood Vacation Ownership, Inc., one of the premier developers and operators of high quality vacation interval ownership resorts. For more information, please visit www.starwoodhotels.com/pressclub 

For further information, please contact:
Sarah Johnson
Managing Partner
Couture Media
Mobile : +971 50 2251607
Email: sarahfpr@gmail.com

Derryn French
Director of Market Communications
The Mina Seyahi Complex
Tel: +971.4. 3993333
Derryn.french@starwoordhotels.com 

© Press Release 2010