Australia: Quest Apartment Hotels has appointed Dennis Tuan-Mu as general counsel and Kamal Atal as chief financial and commercial officer.
Ascott Australia’s managing director David Mansfield said: “It’s fair to say that Quest Apartment Hotels is tracking a path of transformation; we are evolving, growing, and advancing at a rapid pace. To get us to where we need to be, in what remains a complex landscape, we must have the best operators at the helm. There is not a doubt in my mind we have found that in Dennis and Kamal.”
Tuan-Mu brings more than 20 years of legal expertise and joins from an 11-year stint at Delaware North – a global leader in hospitality and food service management. During this time, he held the role of head of legal and compliance APAC and was recently named the Travel, Tourism and Hospitality Lawyer of the Year.
As general counsel, he will lead the legal function of the Quest business, providing strategic direction to support the growth and financial health of the company in line with commercial imperatives.
“Dennis is a highly experienced legal professional with tremendous intellect, capable of managing the intricacies of our unique business format franchise model and will further streamline and strengthen Quest’s legal function to deliver outcomes which empower us for ongoing, sustainable growth,” said Mansfield.
Atal has more than two decades’ experience in the finance sector, having held senior positions for Hyatt in India, Vietnam and Dubai before joining Scenic Luxury Cruises & Tours in 2018 as general manager of finance – APAC.
“Kamal is an astute operator whom I have had the pleasure to work with in previous roles. His discerning nature, commercial insight, and eye for opportunity makes him a great asset, and someone who will be pivotal in helping us meet our aggressive growth targets,” said Mansfield.
Quest has recently announced it will open seven new hotels in New Zealand between June 2021 and July 2022. In addition, the company has a further nine agreements for lease signed in Australia, with construction due to commence in the next 12 months, totalling 715 rooms.
The company will also reveal plans for new sites throughout the UK in 2021, according to Mansfield.
“Serviced apartment style accommodation comprises a significantly lower proportion of the overall accommodation market in the UK, and our maiden project in the UK, Quest Liverpool City Centre, highlights that the product has strong appeal. Working closely with the The Ascott Limited, which of course has an established footprint across Europe, Kamal and Dennis will create the legal and financial frameworks to incrementally put the Quest brand on the map,” he said.
