Chicago Deep Dish: Lodging and Hospitality

Allie is responsible for setting and implementing Virgin Hotels’ global growth strategy. Allie’s primary responsibilities include identifying properties in key markets, and structuring transactions that work for Virgin Hotels and our Owner/Developer partners. Prior to joining Virgin, Allie worked on acquisitions, dispositions and asset management at Sunstone Hotel Investors where she was on a team that completed over $1 billion of hotel transactions. Allie was previously a partner at HMR Analytics, a hospitality asset management firm based in California, and a consultant with PKF Consulting, one of the top advisory services firms in the hospitality industry. Other experiences include hotel operations with Interstate Hotels and Resorts and spa development at Starwood Hotels & Resorts. Allie is a graduate of Cornell’s School of Hotel Administration where she received the Dean’s Baccalaureate Service Award, is a guest lecturer at Cornell Hotel School Pillsbury Institute for Hospitality Entrepreneurship, Columbia University and NYU, was named Southern California Real Estate “Woman of Influence” in 2007, and is the co-chair of the Dean’s Young Advisory Board for Cornell Hotel School.

Steve’s construction career spans decades and his tenure at Leopardo started when he joined the company as an intern in 1987. He is responsible for the strategy and operations of Leopardo’s retail, office, industrial and mixed-use markets. He has personally overseen construction projects totaling more than $600 million across practically every major market. His project experience includes countless Fortune 500 firms and many of the world’s most-recognized brands like Lexus, Apple, Audi, Harley-Davidson, Jewel-Osco, Walgreens and more.

Richard Sprecher currently serves as Vice President of Business Development for Aimbridge Hospitality based out of their Chicago Area Offices. His goal is to grow the company’s third party hotel management contracts, structure Joint venture agreements, obtain hotel receivership assignments, and identify hotels that the company should acquire. Aimbridge Hospitality is the largest Independent Hotel Management & Investment Firm in the country, currently operating over 800 hotels and Resorts in 45 states and three Countries. Ambridge operates independent properties and hotels franchised with Hilton, Marriott, Hyatt, Choice, Radisson, and Wyndham Hotels. Prior to joining Aimbridge in March of 2009, Rich spent 17 years with Choice Hotels International as The Director of Franchise Sales for the Upper Midwest. Selling over 215 hotel franchises in his Career and being a member of Choice’s President Club in all but two years. Prior to that he held senior management positions with Amerihost Properties, Bradbury Suites Hotels, Adams’s Mark Resorts, Stouffer Hotels, and Renaissance Hotels. Richard Sprecher Graduated with Honors from the University of Wisconsin-Stout Hotel & Restaurant Management School and is a Certified Hotel Administrator.

Mr. Sadoff is a co-founder and principal of Scarlett Hotel Group where his focus is in the investment and development of hotel real estate assets. Since the formation of his new company in 2017, Mr. Sadoff has managed the execution of each deal for the company’s portfolio of owned hotels. His expertise in deal structuring, franchising, financing and legal oversight provides the team with the confidence to execute and close on each transaction. Previously, Rob served as the Senior Real Estate Director for First Hospitality Group where he was involved in over $125 million dollars of real estate transactions and 8 hotel developments. Rob was influential in the company’s growth by solidifying multiple management contracts generating nearly $6M in management fee revenue during his tenure. His department was also responsible for asset management on the portfolio of externally owned hotels with a portfolio value of over $900M.