London, UK – July 14, 2025 – HotelREZ® Hotels & Resorts, one of the world’s largest, fastest-growing, and quality-driven hotel representation companies, announces the appointment of Luis Manuel Velarde as Vice President for Latin America (LATAM). This strategic move underscores HotelREZ’ s commitment to global expansion and regional growth.
Luis Manuel Velarde will spearhead the rollout of HotelREZ’ s brand portfolio in LATAM, including Best Loved Hotels®, Elegant Hotel Collection®, and Direct Hotel Bookings™. Best Loved Hotels targets upscale, independent hotels, while the Elegant Hotel Collection focuses on luxury, experience-led properties. The Elegant Hotel Collection emphasizes production and results without high fixed costs, offering members a risk-averse luxury solution.
Luis brings over 20 years of executive sales experience in the hotel franchise and distribution sector, having held senior roles at IHG and Marriott. His extensive background and industry expertise will be instrumental in driving HotelREZ’ s growth strategy in the LATAM region.
HotelREZ’ s approach aims to deliver incremental revenue and reduce reliance on OTAs through Direct Hotel Bookings initiatives™, increasing profitability and reducing distribution costs. As a global partner of Sabre Hospitality, HotelREZ offers deep integration and strategic alignment, providing full representation versus plug-and-play resellers. This model, particularly for Best Loved Hotels, sets HotelREZ apart from basic tech stack providers an edge which has resonated with independent hotels globally.
HotelREZ reports a significant pipeline of prospective partners across LATAM, including independent hotels and regional groups. The next phase will focus on building regional support infrastructure to ensure seamless onboarding and service delivery. Operational excellence and global service delivery will however continue to be driven from the UK.
Mark Lewis, Group CEO of HotelREZ, commented: “As a bootstrapped, private, and entrepreneurial business, we’ve built our success on agility, innovation, and understanding hotelier needs. Our model is performance-based, not fee-heavy, and focused on delivering measurable value at scale.”
Luis Manuel Velarde added: “I am excited to join HotelREZ at this pivotal time. The LATAM market presents immense opportunities, and our innovative approach will drive significant value for our partners.”
Looking ahead, HotelREZ plans to expand its portfolio to include over 500 independent hotels and boutique properties in the region by 2008 including the provision of private label solutions to regional hotel groups.
HotelREZ’ s competitive advantage lies in coupling advanced technology with demand generation and operational excellence. The Elegant Hotel Collection is gaining traction as a performance-based luxury brand, appealing to discerning travelers.
The company’s customer-first ethos has resulted in industry-leading retention rates. HotelREZ remains dedicated to sustainability initiatives and prioritizes diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). The group is now the 16th largest hotel company globally by number of keys, but being privately held it is not subject to quarterly NASDAQ cycles, ensuring service stability and an unwavering focus on delivering incremental income and quality representation.
For more information, visit www.hotelrez.com, www.eleganthotelcollection.com, www.bestloved.com
