Austin Hospitality & Lodging Forum

Hugh Forrest serves as the Director of the annual South by Southwest Interactive Festival. Scheduled March 11-15, 2016 in Austin, this event brings together more than 30,000 digital creatives from across the United States and around the world. These digital creatives are inspired by five days of panels, presentations, brainstorming, networking, deal-making, socializing, creating, innovating, and fun. Forrest was named "Austinite of the Year" in February 2012 by the Austin Chamber of Commerce (along with fellow SXSW Directors Roland Swenson, Louis Black and Nick Barbaro). In June 2014, Forrest and these other SXSW Directors were named Austin Entrepreneurs of the Year by Ernst & Young. In addition to his work at SXSW, he is part of the National Advisory Board for the Poynter Institute in St. Petersberg, Florida. He also serves as a trustee for the Austin Awesome Foundation. Forrest majored in English at Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio. Before joining the SXSW team, he founded a small alternative publication called The Austin Challenger and wrote for several other newspapers.

As the president of the newest addition to the MFG consortium, Manchester Texas Financial Group, Douglas W. Manchester represents Manchester Financial Group and all Texas holdings in the capital city of Austin, Texas. Manchester earned his BA in Political Science with a minor in Business from Wake Forest University. Following graduation, he has applied his business knowledge in all aspects of the hotel, insurance and real estate industries. This career path has led him to Austin to engage the firm in commercial real estate ventures and hotel development.

As the managing partner of the Austin office, Matt sources opportunity, oversees development and asset management for Kor. He identifies acquisitions and creates value through planning, entitlement and strategic partnerships. Prior to joining Kor, Matt was the VP of Development & Finance at Stratus Properties (STRS) where he served as a development manager, analyst and broker. He underwrote over $350 million of closed debt and $175 million of placed equity. Integral to the team, he managed the development of the W Austin Hotel & Residences. This $300 million development is one million square feet and includes a 2,500 capacity music venue anchored by Austin City Limits. He previously served as a legislative analyst in the Texas Senate. Matt is a Texas native and has resided in Austin since 1999. He holds a BS from the University of Texas at Austin as well as an MS in Community & Regional Planning.

As Chief Investment Officer, Greg Clay is responsible for helping determine and then executing on the overall investment strategy of the company. Since joining JMIR in 1998 he has also held the positions of Senior Vice President of Acquisitions and Development and Director of Development. In these positions, Clay was directly responsible for the acquisition and development of projects with a combined cost in excess of $270 million. Prominent transactions include the Marriott Del Mar, a 284-room, full service hotel, which opened January 2002; a mixed–use project consisting of the Omni San Diego Hotel, a 511-room, four diamond hotel, and The Metropolitan, a 36-unit ultra luxury condominium project, which opened in April 2004; and Hotel Solamar, a 235-room Kimpton Boutique Hotel, which opened in April 2005. Prior to joining JMI Realty, Clay worked with John Kratzer at Homegate Hospitality, Inc., serving as Director of Western Development. The company, a developer and owner of mid-priced, extended-stay hotels, grew from a private start-up to a publicly traded company (NASDQ: HMGT), and ultimately merged with Prime Hospitality (NYSE: PDQ). In a two year period, Clay developed eight hotels with more than 1,300 rooms and a combined value in excess of $60 million in the cities of Denver, Albuquerque, Phoenix and Las Vegas. His experience also includes serving as financial manager and financial analyst at Wyndham Hotels and Resorts (NYSE: formerly WYN). During Clay’s tenure at Wyndham, the company transitioned from a privately-owned, property management company with a seventeen property portfolio, to a publicly traded entity with more than 100 properties and a market capitalization in excess of $540 million. Clay played a significant role in the company’s initial public offering with responsibility for the company’s proforma model and stock distribution model.

Scott Blalock is Vice President and General Manager of the JW Marriott Austin, a large convention hotel managed by White Lodging Services. He joined White Lodging in 2006 as Regional Vice President after 18 years with Marriott International. Most recently Scott was the opening General Manager of the JW Marriott Indianapolis. He is very proud of the role his hotel played in launching the Indianapolis chapter of Back On My Feet. Scott served as a board member for the Indianapolis BOMF chapter. In addition to his role with BOMF, Scott was also an active board member for Indianapolis Downtown Inc., the Greater Indianapolis Hotel Lodging Association and the Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce. Since moving to Austin in 2014, Scott has joined the boards of the Austin Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Austin Downtown Alliance and the Austin Chapter of Back on my Feet. Scott is a native Texan and graduated from Southwest Texas State University with a BBA in Marketing. He is married to his wife Renee and they have a 12 year old son, Chris, and 13 year old daughter, Abby.