La Quinta Holdings Inc. has announced that John Cantele will be joining La Quinta as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer effective April 25, 2016. Mr. Cantele will join the Company from Hyatt Hotels Corporation where he served as the Global Head, Select Hotels. Angelo Lombardi and the Company have mutually agreed that Mr. Lombardi will step down as the Company’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, effective immediately.
“We are excited to add John to our leadership team,” said Keith A. Cline, President and Chief Executive Officer of La Quinta. “John has extensive experience across all aspects of select service hotels, both managed and franchised. He was instrumental in growing multiple select service brands at Hyatt where he used his entrepreneurial approach as a longtime owner/operator to help optimize brand distribution and implement significant operational enhancements. We are confident that John will be instrumental in advancing our strategy to optimize financial performance over the long-term by executing on our initiatives to drive an exceptional and consistent La Quinta guest experience.” Mr. Cline continued, “We are very grateful to Angelo for all of his passion, hard work, and dedication to helping grow the La Quinta brand, and we wish him well.”
Mr. Cantele was most recently Global Head, Select Hotels at Hyatt where he led the operations of Hyatt’s owned select service hotels, while also overseeing its franchised hotels operating under the Hyatt House, Hyatt Place and Summerfield Suites brands. In this role, Mr. Cantele was responsible for corporate operations, sales, revenue management, product design and planning, franchise development, and marketing.
Prior to Hyatt, Mr. Cantele was with LodgeWorks Hotel Corporation where he oversaw all aspects of being a developer, an owner/operator and a franchisee of branded hotels throughout the United States. Early in his career, Mr. Cantele held positions with several hospitality brands including Guest Quarters Hotels, Residence Inn, and Summerfield Suites Hotels, serving in various roles, including Vice President of Operations as well as a front-line hotel general manager.
