Hotel Asset Value Enhancement Inc. Appoints Hospitality Expert Jalil Mekouar to President and COO

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. June 05, 2014

PROVIDENCE, RI - June 5, 2014 - Hotel Asset Value Enhancement Inc. (HotelAVE), North America's largest independent hotel real estate asset management and advisory firm, announced the appointment of veteran hospitality expert Jalil Mekouar to the role of President and Chief Operating Officer. In his role, Mekouar will lead HotelAVE's team of asset management and advisory experts and capitalize on his extensive global experience to drive the company's strategic growth and operational expansion plans domestically and internationally.

This appointment demonstrates HotelAVE's commitment to strengthen its service offering and continue to deliver above-market operating results to its clients. HotelAVE plans to strategically grow its regional and global footprint by drawing on Mekouar's broad network, extensive hospitality real estate investment experience and deep advisory and asset management expertise.

“I am extremely pleased to welcome Jalil to HotelAVE's family as I believe he will add tremendous value in exceeding our clients' expectations, continuing to build the best team of experts in the industry, and help us take HotelAVE to new heights, as we continue to expand our platform locally, regionally and internationally,” said Michelle Russo, HotelAVE's Founder and CEO.

Mekouar brings 25 years of international experience in real estate & hospitality operations, finance, investment, asset management and advisory, spanning 35 countries across 6 continents. Prior to HotelAVE, he was the Americas COO & Managing Director with JLL's Hotels & Hospitality group, and his career includes senior leadership roles with InterContinental Hotels, Marriott and Minor International Plc.

Mekouar holds two bachelor's degrees, and an MBA from Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration and France's leading Business School ESSEC. He is also a chartered Fund and Asset Manager and is certified in Hotel Real Estate Investments and Asset Management by Cornell University. A recognized multilingual industry thought leader, Mekouar is regularly invited as a speaker at international conferences around the world and is a member of a number of professional organizations such as the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and the Hotel Asset Management Association (HAMA), amongst others.

“I am very excited to build upon Michelle's impressive success and reputation of excellence during the past decade and together take HotelAVE to the next level. As hospitality investors, owners and lenders are more and more demanding and sophisticated, they will increasingly recognize and appreciate the added value we bring in helping them achieve their strategic goals and objectives both domestically and internationally. Our ambitions are high and I have a clear vision and plan to go from strength to strength and take our clients with us on this exciting journey,” added Mekouar.

About Hotel Asset Value Enhancement Inc. (HotelAVE)

HotelAVE is North America's largest independent hotel real estate asset management and advisory firm with more than $4 billion of hotel assets under management and advising on an additional $4 billion of hotel real estate annually. With in-depth local markets knowledge and institutional grade expertise and know-how, HotelAVE's professional team totals over 300 years of experience in hotel operations, investment and asset management. The company has a long track record of success stories as it pursues every opportunity to maximize value and achieve above-market returns on behalf of its clients. www.hotelAVE.com