The Cooper will be downtown Charleston’s only luxury waterfront hotel. Overlooking the Cooper River, the 225-room hotel draws its design inspiration from its French Quarter surroundings. Opening in late 2025.• ••Founded in 2021, Beemok Hospitality Collection (BHC) is a Charleston, SC-based hospitality company whose sole purpose is to create meaningful ways for people to connect and share extraordinary experiences. With a focus on generational ownership and longstanding partnerships, BHC is committed to building a portfolio of interconnected hospitality, entertainment and wellness experiences that stimulate the senses and enrich lives.

As the General Manager for Thompson Buckhead I oversee all areas of the hotel including Sales, Marketing, Finance, Revenue, Human Resources, Engineering, Security, Food/Beverage and Rooms Operations. My role also leads owner, corporate and community relations. The property, which opened in December of 2021 is a 150,000 square foot hotel and was built for $90 million. As opening GM it has been my responsibility to coordinate with the General Contractor, Architect, Designer and Owner Representatives. In the role of opening GM it was my responsibility to hire all employees, create strategic direction, identify opportunities, established levels of service and the culture of the hotel. During this time, I identified, conceptualized and brought to market Hyatt Hotels Corporation’s first ever Private Membership Club. The hotel includes total budgeted revenue of $30 Million and features an all-day chef driven restaurant, lobby bar, pool, in-room dining, private membership club and 8,000 sq. feet of banquet space.

I was the Hotel Manager for Dorchester Collection at the storied Hotel Bel Air, in the exclusive Bel Air neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. In this position I oversaw all Room and Food and Beverage operations. This included financials of $47 Million, staffing of 325 and supervising overall guest experience. This position allowed me to engage directly with the guest to ensure that every element of their stay is unforgettable. Behind-the-scenes my role is that of a problem solver. Sometimes that means looking at our budget with an eye for value (for both our owners and our guests) and other times it may mean acting as a mediator between departments and personnel. I have a passion for developing members of our staff and helping them to discover their purpose within our hotel and within the industry, while simultaneously offering unparalleled service and experience to our guests. During my tenure we maintained a Forbes 5 Star Status, and received our AAA 5 Diamond in 2020 for the first time since 2011.

Over this two-year period, I worked as the Food & Beverage Director at the St. Regis Atlanta. During my tenure the property was recognized as the number one hotel in Atlanta by U.S. News (2016). In my position I was responsible for a $14million Food and Beverage operation consisting of restaurant, bar, pool, ice rink, in-room dining, banquets and catering. I oversaw 120 employees including both the front-of-house and culinary, as well as a leadership team of 14. I liaised directly with ownership and reported to the General Manager. One of my primary focuses was creating unforgettable guest experiences—be it producing exciting large-scale events or planning a personalized surprise for one of our 54 residences.

Following my time in Singapore, I moved to the Capella Hotel Group corporate office, where I assisted the Executive Vice President of Food & Beverage & Spa. In this position I worked with various Capella Hotel Group properties in budget creation and promotional planning. Correspondingly, I assisted with opening planning of upcoming Capella Hotel Group properties. I also spent time at the Capella Washington, D.C., Georgetown overseeing the food and beverage operation.

During my tenure at Capella Singapore, I oversaw operations for the different Food & Beverage outlets, including the 130-seat all-day dining restaurant, 80 seat fine-dining Cantonese restaurant, 80 seat Cuban bar, In-room dining and a $10million banquet operation. For four months I acted as Interim Food & Beverage Director, in charge of the entire department, responsible for building and presenting the 2014 Food & Beverage Budget, and monthly presentations to ownership at Executive Committee meetings. My focus was on raising service standards through regular training and the institution of Capella Hotels’ standards and values with the ultimate goal of raising guest satisfaction and guest retention, while simultaneously increasing profitability.

As Food & Beverage Manager I oversaw a 127 seat Modern American Tavern, 10,000 square feet of banquet space and Room Service for 357 rooms. Additionally, I served as a member of the Executive Committee, which works to further the vision and mission of the property. My duties include day-to-day management of outlets, management of P&L, creation of the 2013 F&B budget, implementing and updating inventories and upholding Capella Hotel Group standards. My goal is to inspire and train a management team of 4 and staff of 45, while making all outlets profitable and efficient.

This was a superior lounge catering to the elite of Hollywood nightlife. This position required me to oversee all areas of operation and included managing employees, working with an accountant and bookkeeper on financials, maintaining inventory, creating promotions and developing community relations. In this position I reported to 4 managing partners and 30 investors. It was my responsibility to ensure the lounge was run efficiently and profitably. This was achieved through operational efficiencies, understanding and marketing to our clientele, creating marketed events with promoters, and developing relationships with event planners. Additionally, it was my job to keep the staff motivated, focused and unified and to ensure that the service excellence standards were followed, with specific focus on employee, guest and owner expectations. The demands of this position helped me raise my personal standard of service.

As Managing Director, I supervised the non-profit theatre company’s Communications Director, Membership Coordinator, bookkeeper, accountant and a broad range of volunteers. I was responsible for annual budget development and monitoring, financial reporting, and earned revenue and was the staff liaison to the Finance Committee of the Board of Directors. In addition to earned revenue, I also oversaw the volunteer team responsible for the annual benefit event (the company’s main revenue source).