The latest industry appointments

JOHN SLOSAR has been named as the new Chairman of Cathay Pacific Airways, John Swire & Sons, Swire Pacific, Swire Properties and Hong Kong Aircraft Engineering. Currently the Chief Executive of Cathay Pacific, US national Slosar will now replace Christopher Pratt, who is retiring.

IVAN CHU has been selected to replace John Slosar as Chief Executive of Cathay Pacific Airways. Chu has worked with the Hong Kong-based airline since 1984, including spells in mainland China, Taiwan, Thailand and Australia. He currently serves as the airline’s Chief Operating Officer.

TOM KLEIN has been announced as the new Chief Executive Officer of Sabre Holdings, succeeding Sam Gilliland. Klein is currently the company’s President, and will now continue in this role as well as serving as CEO. He has been with Sabre for more than two decades, becoming President in 2010.

BART BUIRING has been named as Marriott International’s new Senior Vice President of Lodging Services & Operations for Asia Pacific. Having joined Marriott in 2001, Buiring has served in India, Australia and the US before becoming Regional VP of Operations & Lodging Services for Asia.

SEAN BRENNAN has become Alila Hotels & Resorts’ new Regional Vice President for Southeast Asia. The move marks a promotion for Brennan, who joined Alila in 2007 as the opening General Manager at Alila Villas Uluwatu in Bali. He has also worked in Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Korea.

JULIAN AYERS has been named as Alila’s new Regional Vice President for India & the Middle East. He joins the company from his currently role as General Manager of the Ros Hotel in Delhi, which is managed by Hilton, and has had previous spells in Oman, Indonesia and the UK.

STEFAN BREG has been named as IHG’s new F&B Concept Design Director for the Asia, Middle East and Africa (AMEA) region, responsible for leading the company’s F&B development. Most recently, he has been running his own restaurant creation and design company, called TRIBE, based in Dubai.

PATRICK MARTINEZ has been appointed as the new General Manager of the Grand Kempinski Hotel Shanghai. A seasoned hotelier, Martinez brings more than 20 years of hospitality experience to the hotel, including senior management positions with Marriott, IHG and Rotana Hotels.

KURT MACHER has been appointed as the new Resident Manager at the Pan Pacific Singapore. With 18 years of experience, Macher is an experienced hotelier and joins from The Peninsula Hong Kong, where he served as Executive Assistant Manager. He is fluent in English and German.

JIAN YU has been announced as the new Group Director of Leisure Sales – Central Region, for Mercure and ibis Erawan Thailand. Jian has more than 10 years of experience, and most recently served as Assistant Director of Sales at the Novotel Bangkok Siam Square.

KATSUHIKO OKAZAKI has been announced as the new Director of Guest Services at the Pan Pacific Singapore. Having spent many years in the entertainment industry, Okazaki subsequently moved to Shangri-La, where he worked at hotels in Hangzhou, Cairns and Tokyo.

THANOS LIONSATOS has become the new Director of Sales & Marketing for the Dusit Thani Maldives. He joins the resort with more than 20 years of international experience, most recently at Oakwood, where he served as Cluster Director of Sales & Marketing for properties in Japan.

DAVID TRAYNOR has been announced as the new Director of Sales & Marketing for Grand Kempinski Hotel Shanghai. Traynor arrives at the new hotel from the Shangri-La and Traders hotels in Macau, where he held the same position. He has also worked for Sands China.

KAMAL SILVA has been appointed Executive Chef at Shangri-La’s Rasa Sentosa Resort & Spa in Singapore. With 22 years of culinary experience, Chef Kamal has worked at a range of luxury hotels, including spells in Oman, the UAE and Canada. He previously worked with Fairmont.