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| Michele M. Gordon |
McLEAN, Va., June 15 ,2020—Officials of “She Has
a Deal,” an annual hotel investment pitch competition for early-career women,
today announced its five finalists selected to advance to the final round
to compete for the prize of $50,000 in hotel deal equity.
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| Tracy Prigmore of TL Solutions--Mary Gardella Photography |
During the preliminary judging round, 14 teams
comprised of 28 participants pitched their hotel investment acquisition or
development plans live on Zoom to a judging panel of top-level hotel business
executives, entrepreneurs and investors.
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| Chelsea Lawson from University of Houston |
The
judges evaluated and selected the following five teams:
CityTerrace
Ventures: Nancy Guzman and Marlene Reyes from Cornell
University
Datcher:
Joanne Angbazo, Kristen Collins, and Lera Covington from Cornell University
Fernweh
Partners: Meaghan Carfrey, Nikki Gonzales, and Viviana
Wilkins from San Diego State University
Lodgingo:
Eng Ea and Regina Yoo from New York University
Phoenix
Capital: Chelsea Lawson from University of Houston and
Heaven Douglas from Howard University
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| Nancy Guzman from Cornell University |
The teams, who started the “She Has a Deal”
process in November 2019, completed more than 12 hours of intensive hotel
investment education to learn how to source, evaluate and raise capital for a
real hotel deal.
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| Meaghan Carfrey from San Diego State University |
“These remarkable young women were so well
prepared, I forgot I was judging a competition versus consulting with my
tenured hospitality partners,” said Michele M. Gordon, senior director
for Amadeus Hospitality, who served as a judge during the preliminary
round.
“The
presentations were thoroughly researched and representative of established
thought leaders versus student contestants. In a few years, I know our
industry will be reaching out to these trailblazers for advice.”
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| Heaven Douglas from Howard University |
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| Marlene Reyes from Cornell University |
Pitches included ground-up construction,
adaptive reuse, reflags and conversions of hotels in markets ranging from
Silicon Valley to suburban Atlanta to theme park-adjacent Orlando.
“What an amazing group of young women!” said Brian
Covington, judge and vice president of revenue optimization at Salamander
Hotels & Resorts.
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| Nikki Gonzales from San Diego State University |
“Their
work was on par with, if not better, than what I’ve seen through other
feasibility assessments. I applaud ‘She Has a Deal’ for providing a platform
toward hotel ownership while educating in the process.”
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| Regina Yoo from New York University |
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| Eng Sou Ea from New York University |
" If you would have told me when I was a
freshman walking on the University of Houston campus that I would one day be
competing to become a hotel owner, I would've said you were lying.
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| Viviana Wilkins from San Diego State University |
"I am profoundly grateful to the SHaD Squad
for this opportunity and excited to compete in the finals alongside my partner,
Heaven Douglas."
“It really gave me hope for the future,” said Tracy
Prigmore of TLTsolutions and founder of the competition. “These women
gave their projects their all, and it was so inspiring to watch them put what
they learned over the last five months to work in a real-world pitch. I
can’t wait to execute the winning deal!
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| Lera Covington from Cornell University |
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| Kristen Collins from Cornell University |
In consideration of the health and safety of
everyone involved, the final pitch competition, originally scheduled for April
25, will take place later this year on October 24, 2020 at the Hilton
Innovation Gallery.
For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit www.shehasadeal.com.
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| Joanne Angbazo from Cornell University |
For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit www.shehasadeal.com.
CONTACT:
CHRIS DALY
PRESIDENT
DALY GRAY PUBLIC RELATIONS, INC.
620 Herndon Parkway, Suite 115 | Herndon, VA
20170
Main: 703-435-6293
Mobile: 703-864-5553