Speakers

Below are our speakers from the 2012 Conference. 

As the global vice president, Gregg Anderson is the overall company lead and responsible executive for The Registry Collection brand, an elite exchange program linking more than 135 luxury shared vacation ownership resorts, representing over 175 developments worldwide. He provides strategic direction to a group of product managers in seven regional offices. He is a frequent speaker at conferences and is one of a only a handful of authorities on the subject of luxury shared vacation ownership and the concept of reciprocal use programs for this niche segment.

Before joining Wyndham Exchange and Rentals, the parent company of The Registry Collection, his career included positions as Vice President of Acquisitions for Intrawest, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing for ClubCorp; and various positions in brand management with The Walt Disney Company in the United States and Japan.

Gregg is an ARDA Trustee. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Communications from Florida State University in the United States and attended graduate school in Florence, Italy. He lives with his wife and two teenage sons in Florida. In his spare time he is actively involved as an executive with The Boy Scouts of America.

Irene Aviles is the Founder and President of Private Trade Winds, Inc., and is passionate and proactive in defining villa travel in the luxury segment of the travel industry. After spending more than 20 years as a senior executive in the multi-family real estate management industry, Mrs. Aviles, in a bold and innovative move, launched the first “hybrid club concept” for luxury vacation homeowners and discerning travelers alike.

In February 2007, Private Trade Winds was born out of Mrs. Aviles knowledge as a luxury vacation homeowner, as well as her experience and interest in world travel. Private Trade Winds is quickly becoming known in the luxury travel segment as the purveyor of the “Five Star Villa Vacation”. By offering a comprehensive one-stop shop approach, Vacation Homeowners can take advantage of PTW’s Rental, Trade and Travel Program, while the Traveler gains access to a professionally managed and branded global villa portfolio. Each client experiences various types of vacation homeownership which includes the service of a personalized concierge and licensed travel agency. This is groundbreaking for the industry. In an effort to further define villa travel in the marketplace, Mrs. Aviles partnered with The Travel Institute in writing the first Villa Certification Course, a program designed to teach Travel Agents, Real Estate Agents and Developers how to market and rent villa product to the consumer.

Carl Berry is CEO of Star Resort Group (SRG) which is the nation’s oldest and most experienced fractional/private residence club developer and marketer. Star is headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Berry has an extensive history in shared ownership products with a specialty in urban timesharing in San Francisco and New York. The Manhattan Club, the World’s largest urban timeshare, has over 242 luxury apartments. He brought to market the first deeded timeshare in the World at Brockway Springs, Lake Tahoe, California in 1973.

As a full member of the Urban Land Institute Carl serves as a member of the Silver Flight, Recreational Development Council Carl is a former Chairman of ARDA and a member of its Board for over 18 years. Previously he served a Chair of the ARDA International Foundation Educational Institute, Chair of the Meetings and Membership Committees and Chair of the National Timeshare Council. He holds the Registered Resort Professional [RRP] designation from ARDA and has been awarded the Leader of the Year.

Carl is also a founder of the Meritus College Fund a nonprofit providing four-year college scholarships, Chair of the Board Member of the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival and for the University of Idaho, a former president of the University of Idaho Foundation and a former president of the Alumni Association. He was named to the University of Idaho’s Hall of Fame.

Michael Berry has served as the president of the National Ski Areas Association in Lakewood, CO., since January 1993. NSAA is the trade association for ski area owners and operators. It represents 325 alpine resorts that account for more than 90 percent of the skier/snowboard visits nationwide. Additionally, it has 500 supplier members who provide equipment, goods and services to the mountain resort industry.

As president, Berry provides leadership and oversees the association’s operations, including issues related to industry trends, issues, regulation, educational and market research programs. He has worked in the mountain resort industry for more than 30 years.

Prior to NSAA, Berry worked at Kirkwood Resort in California, a winter/summer resort located 35 miles southwest of Lake Tahoe, for thirteen years. He began in 1980 as vice president and was named president in 1985. Prior to Kirkwood, Berry worked at some of the most prominent resorts in the United States, including Keystone, CO., Sun Valley, Idaho and Vail, CO. He currently serves on the board of several non-profit organizations including the United States Ski and Snowboard Association.

Esteban Biondi is a Senior Engineer and Marina Studio Leader at the West Palm Beach office of Applied Technology & Management (ATM). Mr. Biondi has over 12 years of experience specialized in engineering, environmental and planning consulting focused on marinas and resort master plans. Since 1993, he has worked as a consultant on projects throughout Latin America, the Caribbean, US, Middle East, China and other regions. During 2006-2007 he directed ATM’s Marina Team in Dubai.

Mr. Biondi directs comprehensive marina consulting services, including market and feasibility studies, planning, due diligence, permitting, design and a range of supporting engineering and environmental services.

Mr Biondi is the Chairman of the PIANC Drystack Working Group, has written papers and articles about marina planning, has participated in academic discussions about environmental impacts of coastal tourism development, and conducts independent research on social and environmental sustainability of marina projects.

Ken Bonham is a Founding Partner and Vice President of Business Development at Lucid Agency. Prior to working in the digital world, Ken started in the publishing industry, followed by executive recruiting in the Investment Banking sector. Interactive marketing experience includes campaigns for ASU, Brookfield Homes, Barrett Jackson, Investor Place Media, SAP, and many others. Ken and his team have developed a wide variety of campaigns including website design and development, lead generation and customer acquisition campaigns, retargeting, branding and display campaigns. Ken received his B.A.E. from Arizona State University and sits on the senior committee for the Phoenix section of non-profit Lift Up America, where he helps further the organization’s mission of providing food and education to children in lower income areas.

Ralph Bowden is president of Ralph Stewart Bowden, Inc., Real Estate Counselors, and is the publisher of Bowden’s Market Barometer, now in its 20th year of publication. Bowden’s real estate consulting experience of over thirty years concentrates on market research and strategic planning for lifestyle focused master planned communities, resorts with real estate to sell, and membership clubs throughout the United States as well as the Caribbean, Mexico and Central America. Recent engagements include the redevelopment of the Concord Resort in the Catskills, and the ongoing development of Squaw Valley by KSL.

The Market Barometer was first published in 1992, during the depths of an earlier recession, and focuses on the positive social and economic currents that constantly influence the residential community and resort development business. Ralph has served on ULI- The Urban Land Institute’s Recreational Development Council and was a member of ULI’s 1997 Resort Development Handbook Advisory Committee.

John Burlingame is Global Head-Residential Development for Hyatt Hotels Corporation. Since joining Hyatt in 1982, Mr. Burlingame has been involved in all phases of hotel development, management contract and joint venture negotiations. During 1994, Mr. Burlingame was instrumental in the formation of Hyatt Vacation Ownership, Inc. (“HVOI”), the predecessor entity to the Hyatt Residential Group, Inc. (“HRG”), and the Hyatt Residence Club and served as HVOI’s Executive Vice President for 15 years. HRG currently operates 15 resorts in 11 destinations with over 33,000 members.

Hyatt Hotels Corporation, through affiliates, provides branding, sales and marketing, hospitality and homeowner association management for residential components of mixed-use projects. Residential components include both whole and shared ownership properties.

Mr. Burlingame is a graduate of Cornell University and received his MBA from the University of Chicago. Mr. Burlingame has served on the Board of Directors of the American Resort Development Association (“ARDA”) for over 12 years and was a member of ARDA’s Executive Committee for 8 years. Mr. Burlingame served as ARDA’s Chairman from May 2003 through May 2005. While Mr. Burlingame served as ARDA’s Chairman, he was also ARDA’s representative on the Real Estate Round Table and was elected to its Board of Directors for a one-year term in 2004. Mr. Burlingame is also a Trustee of the Aquila Three Peaks High Income Fund and was a consulting editor for the Handbook of Real Estate Portfolio Management.

Michael Burns brings deep industry experience to Resort Equities, recently joining as its President & COO to lead the company’s core development, marketing, sales and operations activities. Michael was the founder and President of Private Residence Resorts; which specializes in boutique fractional properties. Two of those properties, Les Saisons in Sun Valley, Idaho and Hearthstone in McCall, Idaho represent two of the more successful fractional properties in the industry and are now a part of the Resort Equities portfolio. Both properties are sold out and operated under a proprietary reservation and operating system, overseeing all day to day operations of the properties, owner rentals, re-sales, annual budgeting and refurbishment planning. Michael has also participated in a variety of consulting and partnership roles in more than 8 other fractional and shared ownership resorts throughout North America and is recognized as one of the leading experts and innovators in the field. Prior to forming Private Residence Resorts in 1999, Michael was the President and COO of Vacation Internationale; which was co-founded by his father in 1974 and pioneered the points based timeshare structure which is used throughout the industry today. He was the first executive hired to create Disney’s timeshare business in 1989 and served as V.P. and General Manager for nearly 8 years. Prior to Disney he was a member of the senior management team that led Marriott into the timeshare business in the mid 80’s. He is a Trustee member of the American Resort Development Association and Co-Chair of the Fractional Forum at the annual ARDA conference. He is a frequent speaker and panel member at conferences on shared ownership in the U.S. and internationally. Michael is a graduate of the University of Washington with a B.S. degree in Political Science. He is also a graduate of the Executive Development program at the Wharton School of Business.

Michael Butler is the Chairman of Midlan International and has been active in the Shared Ownership Industry since 1980. He has a BA Honors Degree from Sussex University in the UK and an MBA in Marketing from Columbia Graduate School of Business in NYC. His military service was as an RAF Aircrew Officer specializing in Electronic Warfare. Corporate work experience include Time Inc in the Magazine and Book Divisions and CBS Inc in the Records Division in the UK and CBS Corporate in Profit Evaluation and Acquisitions.

In the Shared Ownership Industry Midlan operates as a Resort Property Broker and as a “Startup and Turnaround” Operational Management company in Timeshare, Fractionals and Vacation Ownership projects. Midlan pioneered the concept of “Mixed Use Resorts” in articles published in 1989 and created “Shared Ownership” programs for Yachts and RV companies. Recent Consulting assignments include developing new Marketing Programs for one of the largest International Shared Ownership companies in the USA. Additionally Midlan has been tasked with raising Development Financing for a major Corporate client for “Mixed use Resort” acquisitions.

David Callaghan is vice president of resort sales and service for Interval International and Preferred Residences®. He is responsible for the United States, eastern Canada, and the Caribbean, manages day-to-day sales and service activities, and plays a lead role in building the company’s developer client base.

Callaghan joined Interval in 1993 as a vacation counselor, was promoted to on-site account manager that year, and to Caribbean region manager in 1995. He has held a variety of positions of increasing scope, including assistant vice president and vice president of business development where he directed the company’s participation in industry conferences throughout the Americas.

Callaghan received the American Resort Development Association Circle of Excellence Award as Producer of the Year in 2002, 2003, and 2004, and is a member of its Chairman’s League. Active in the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association, he was named its 2009 Allied Member of the Year.

Mr. Mark Carney joined the Royal Resorts in 1983 and has been the Sales and Marketing Director for the company since 1989. He has been a frequent speaker at Conferences in United States, Europe and Latin America. He is also the Honorary British Consul for the States of Quintana Roo and Yucatan, Mexico and the representative of the British Chamber of Commerce for southeast Mexico. He received The Order of the British Empire recognition in 2004 from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

In his capacity as Sales and Marketing Director the Royal Resorts have built and sold out four Resorts in Cancun Mexico, The Royal Mayan, The Royal Caribbean, the Royal Islander and The Royal Sands consisting on 902 Ocean View villas.

The Royal Resorts group opened their sixth project in July 2006 in the Riviera Maya, just north of the Playa del Carmen, Mexico, The Royal Haciendas, consisting of 252 Villas. Built in Phases, the first three phases are sold out and the 4th phase (already 75% sold out) opened in July 2009. The Royal Resorts has 3,000 employees in Cancun and over 85,000 member families. The Royal Resorts group is now commencing their seventh project Grand Residences by Royal Resorts consisting of fulltime and fractional in Puerto Morelos, Mexico.

James J. Chaffin, Jr. is the co-founder with James W. Light and President of Chaffin/Light Associates. With over 40 years of experience in resort/ recreation community development, Chaffin and Light have developed communities in Snowmass Village, CO, the Resort Semiahmoo near Blaine Washington, Lake Arrowhead, California and Callawassie Island, Spring Island, and Chechessee Creek Club near Hilton Head, SC. They developed the Roaring Fork Club; a private golf and fly-fishing club near Aspen, CO. Spring Island, in particular, has received numerous awards and national acclaim for its environmental sensitivity, including the 2000 Urban Land Institute Awards for Excellence.

Prior to 1978, as Senior Vice President of the Sea Pines Company, he was involved in several major community developments in Hilton Head Island and Charleston, South Carolina, as well as Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, Florida and Puerto Rico. Mr. Chaffin is a past Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Urban Land Institute, a non-profit research and education institute that is dedicated to responsible land use and supported and directed by its 40,000+ members. Jim co-chaired with Charleston Mayor Joe Reilly a South Carolina statewide collaborative smart growth initiative, seeking to identify and foster patterns of growth that are economically sound, environmentally sensitive and supportive of community livability.

In both South Carolina and Colorado, Mr. Chaffin has been an active contributor to community organizations, serving on school, hospital, symphony, and community foundation boards. He is past Chairman of the National Real Estate Advisory Board of the Trust for Public Land. He is also past Chairman of the Lowcountry Institute, a 501(c)3 environmental trust in South Carolina whose mission is to provide responsible leadership in the conservation and use of Lowcountry resources by fostering learning opportunities and helping local policymakers, landowners and residents make informed decisions. He is an Honorary Member of the American Society of Landscape Architects and has served on the ASLA Foundation Board. In addition, Chaffin was the President of the Alumni Council of the College of Arts & Sciences at the University of Virginia and served a six year term on the Board of Managers for the University.

Scott Christian is a partner and the Chief Financial Officer of the Resort Equities group of companies. He is a seasoned financial executive with big picture vision and strong entrepreneurial spirit. Additionally, he brings a broad, in-depth knowledge of the fractional real estate industry. Prior to joining Resort Equities in 2008, Scott was the Founder and President of First Fractional Funding, one of only two providers of consumer financing in the fractional real estate market. In only 18 months, Scott and his team built a thriving business capturing approximately 50% market share. Prior to First Fractional Funding, Scott founded a niche real estate investment company, American Pet Care Properties. Scott’s company acquired, developed and sold veterinary hospitals and other pet service facilities. Scott has held executive positions in other early stage companies including: treasurer of a publicly traded REIT, CFO of a textile rental company and COO/CFO of a mail order catalog retailer. Scott spent his early career at KPMG Peat Marwick in their financial consulting division. Scott grew up in the Midwest attending the University of Kansas where he achieved both a BS and Masters in Business Administration.

Michele Combs is the Director of The Registry Collection for the North American region. The Registry Collection is an elite exchange program, representing over 30,000 members and over 190 resort destinations. The Registry Collection is the largest, luxury exchange network in the industry and is celebrating its 10th year of providing luxury exchanges and valued member benefits.

Michele provides leadership for the North American market in the areas of strategic product development, exchange and call center operations, marketing and business development.

Michele has 20 years in the vacation ownership industry. She is a graduate of Indiana and Ball State Universities and holds a masters degree of International Studies from Illinois State University.

Roberta Cordell is Vice President of Ragatz Associates. Roberta has been associated with the firm for nine years, and assumed her present position in 2009. As Vice President, Roberta has worked on over 250 such studies throughout the United States, Mexico, the Caribbean, Canada, and Central America. She is primarily responsible for the field research components, and has gathered extensive experience for all types of products in the resort real estate industry. Roberta has worked on eight national surveys of the fractional interest, private residence club and destination club industries, as well as on eight national conferences on the topics.

In 2008 Roberta assumed primary responsibility for managing the firm’s annual industry conference, an educational forum for the fractional real estate and resort real estate industries. The event is the longest running, most widely recognized, and informative global gathering in the industry.

Prior to joining Ragatz Associates, Roberta had an extended career in the technology industry, with management positions at Qualcomm, Ericsson and Vectron. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from Fort Lewis College in Colorado (1987).

Keith Cox is the founder and CEO of Resort Equities group of companies. Keith was a serial entrepreneur who co-founded businesses in the restaurant, consumer technology and venture capital industries. Prior to entering the resort industry, Keith co-founded and served as managing director of Brainstorm Ventures, an early-stage venture capital fund, which invested in e-commerce and emerging technology companies such as OpenTable.com and Zappos.com. He also helped to found, fund and launch consumer internet and mobile technology companies such as Me.com, Santa.com and Ficture, Inc., serving in each case as the Chairman of the board of directors. Prior to BrainStorm Ventures, Keith co-founded and served as CEO of World Wrapps, a west coast chain of gourmet, quick-service restaurants and Hot Concepts Award winner. More recently, Keith conceived of, launched and served as CEO of another growing, venture-backed restaurant chain, Pacific Catch, which is a moderately priced, Pacific-inspired, fish house. His previous business experience included that of strategic management consultant in the consumer practice at Booz-Allen & Hamilton and financial consultant at Deloitte & Touche. Keith obtained two BAs in Business Economics and Sociology at UC Santa Barbara and his MBA at Stanford University.

Ed Crovo is Senior Vice President of the Hyatt Residential Group, Inc. Hyatt Residential Group is responsible for all aspects of the Hyatt Residence Club (shared-ownership) and Hyatt Residences (branded whole-ownership). In this capacity, he oversees all aspects of the Hyatt Residential Group, Inc. His responsibilities encompass day-to-day on-site management of the corporate office and shared service center, oversight of the sales and marketing operation, homeowner’s association management, as well as the Hyatt Residence Club owner reservation system, rental programs, and quality assurance programs. Mr. Crovo’s responsibilities include working with Hyatt Development Corporation during the construction and start-up of each Hyatt residential resort.

Mr. Crovo also has responsibility over the Hyatt Residence Club that currently services approximately 33,000 member-owners. Mr. Crovo is a five-time nominee for the Donald M. Pritzker Award for General Manager of the Year, which he won in 1996.

Mr. Crovo has a B.S. in Business Administration with concentration on Hotel and Restaurant Administration from Florida State University. Prior to joining Hyatt in 1972, he served in the U.S. Army as a First Lieutenant operating officer’s clubs in Europe. He is a member of ARDA and has served as a Chairman or on the Board of Directors of multiple organizations, including local visitor bureaus, hotel associations, urban improvement associations, chambers of commerce, Rotary Club, and the Hawaii Nature Center.

Lindsay Culbreath is the Senior Director of Business Development for STR (Smith Travel Research, Inc.), the recognized leader for hotel industry benchmarking and research. STR provides clients—including hotel operators, developers, financiers, analysts and suppliers to the hotel industry—access to hotel research and custom reports.

STR provides a single source of global hotel data covering daily and monthly performance data, forecasts, annual profitability, hotel pipeline and hotel census information. Their commitment to confidentiality and accuracy has set the industry standard for over twenty-five years. STR founded the STR family of companies and is proudly associated with STR Global, RRC Associates, STR Analytics, and HotelNewsNow.com. STR also founded the Hotel Data Conference which is held annually in Nashville, Tennessee.

Lindsay oversees the business development & marketing efforts for the STR family of companies. She is responsible for the growth of the STAR program as well as building vendor relationships by promoting new products and services. Lindsay is often featured as a guest speaker for hotel industry presentations. She is a member of the American Hotel & Lodging Association’s Women In Lodging and was recently a council member of the Under 30 Gateway.

Prior to joining STR, Lindsay was the Divested Accounts Supervisor for HCA (Hospital Corporation of America). Lindsay is a graduate of Lipscomb University with a bachelor’s degree in Marketing and Management. She resides in Hendersonville, TN.

Richard F. Davis has more than 30 years of experience in the recreational and resort real estate industry and is Co-Chair of the Hotel, Resort and Club Group of the U.S. based international law firm of Greenberg Traurig. Rick has counseled developers, investors, lenders, legislative committees and government agencies. He is a Trustee of the American Resort Development Association, a member of the Urban Land Institute and its Recreational Product Council, the U.S.-Mexico Chamber of Commerce, the Association of Mexican Tourism Developers, and the Caribbean Hotel Association. He has been a member of industry task forces in Florida, California and other U.S. jurisdictions as well as with respect to Mexico, the Caribbean and other foreign locations. Rick holds political science and law degrees from the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) and is admitted to practice law in California, Washington D.C. and before all U.S. district federal courts, the U.S. Tax Court and the U.S. Supreme Court.

James Dean joined WealthEngine as Vice President and Head of WealthEngine’s Luxury & Financial Practice in February 2009. He leads our luxury and financial team and manages the relationships of our key accounts. While driving the growth of WealthEngine’s financial services practice, James launched the luxury practice in 2009 and has achieved great success growing it in to an important industry for our firm. WealthEngine’s luxury customers come from the following industries: real estate, fractional, timeshare, hotel & resorts, retail, private aviation, automobile, travel, cruise lines and art organizations. James specializes in affluent prospecting helping our clients in their business development efforts to identify and win qualified affluent clients. James sales career spans nearly twenty years. Prior to WealthEngine, James lead the sales efforts at BroadReach Partners, a financial and technology lead generation firm. Prior to that, James was VP Sales at Institutional Shareholder Services leading its’ corporate governance ratings sales and Thomson Financial where he sold financial data and portfolio management software. James earned his BS from Northeastern University and Master’s in International Business from Pepperdine University.

Michelle DuChamp is assistant vice president sales, business development at Interval International, a leading global provider of vacation services. In this role, she directs the promotion and sale of client products and services, such as Interval’s turnkey reservation services and third-party relationships. She also oversees Preferred Residences®, the branded membership and exchange program created by Interval and Preferred Hotel Group, serving as a liaison between the companies and managing business development.

DuChamp joined Interval International in 1998 and has held positions of increasing responsibility. She was promoted to director in 2001, where she managed three of Interval’s five Eastern region territories: Eastern Canada, Northeast/Midwest, and Southeast United States. Prior to that, she was an underwriter in Heller Financial, Inc.’s vacation ownership group.

She has been an active participant in the American Resort Development Association for the past decade and has served as a speaker on several of its roundtables. She is a Registered Resort Professional (RRP), the industry’s highest individual designation.

DuChamp received a bachelor of science in business administration from Texas A & M University with a major in accounting and a focus on international business and is a certified public accountant.

J. Edward (“Jim”) Foley, III is a Managing Director of Bentley Securities Corporation and directs the firm’s real estate and lodging investment banking practice. He began his career with JONES LANG WOOTTON (now Jones Lang LaSalle) in 1977, where he was elected a partner of the firm in 1979. Mr. Foley was responsible for cross-border transactions between Europe and the United States and later directed the JLW’s real estate investment banking operations in the western U.S. In 1986, Mr. Foley joined THE BOSTON FINANCIAL GROUP, INC. as Senior Vice President and head of Boston Financial Real Estate Advisors, the company’s institutional real estate investment management subsidiary. Joining J.P. MORGAN ASSET MANAGEMENT INC. in 1987, Mr. Foley led a team of real estate professionals that invested in real estate equity, mortgages and the securities of private and public real estate companies on behalf of Morgan’s commingled funds and pension fund separate accounts. Over the course of his career, Mr. Foley has been responsible for over $3 billion in real estate-related transactions. Mr. Foley has served actively with several organizations including The Urban Land Institute, Pension Real Estate Association, the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts and the Squaw Valley Institute. He is a former director of Security Capital Realty, Inc., The Awosting Reserve, Whitestone Mortgage Acquisition Corporation, ATI, Inc. and USLand LLC. Mr. Foley attended the University of Maine and completed additional studies at Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and New York University.

R.J. Gallagher, Jr., is the Founding Partner of Forte International. Forte is a full-service marketing, sales, communications and design firm located in Aspen and Denver, Colorado and Vancouver, British Columbia.

Over the past 20 years, the Partners in Forte International have served as the marketing, design, communications, sales and support partner for over $41.9 billion in real estate transactions for our clients and their projects worldwide. Forte has provided professional services and support programs for discriminating projects in the most desirable destinations throughout the United States, Mexico, Canada, Europe and Asia. The Founders of Forte are proven performers in the shared and equity ownership of luxury residences and private residence clubs. The projects that Forte has been engaged with since 1999 are the most successful projects within their respective marketplaces and in the PRC industry as a whole. Our professional services to the development sector also include masterplanning, conceptual designs, market research, financial inventory management, legal support, investment recommendations, developer bulk sales programs and operational management and implementation.

R.J attended the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado and graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Marketing and Finance. R.J and his family have called Aspen home since 1980. R.J believes that 2012 is a defining year for the shared-ownership industry.

Edward F. Gowan, Executive Director of the Arizona Golf Association, ’85-present. ’95-present Founder, Executive Director, Arizona Golf Foundation ; ’85-present Managing Director, AGA SSG (Consulting); ’89-’98 Executive Director, Pacific Coast Golf Association; ’81-’85 Tournament Director, Ladies Professional Golf Association; ’77-’81 Rules Official, Ladies Professional Golf Association; ’72-’77 Associate Editor, Golfer News, Cleveland, Ohio.

Current Affiliations: United States Golf Association – Regional Associations Committee, Rules Committee, Championships. Golf Writers Association of America. International Association of Golf Administrators, Past President. Management Committee, Pacific Coast Golf Association. Golf Course Superintendents Association (GSCAA). Golf Digest, Course Rating Panelist.

Golf Course Consulting – Project Involvement
Arizona Golf Association: confidential economic and environmental data development, course consulting /development, agronomics, design objectives.
Private Consulting: National and International Association development; strategic analysis for golf course and club operations.

As one of Inspirato’s founders, Brad Handler focuses on corporate finance and strategic initiatives. For more than 20 years, Brad has worked at some of the world’s most exciting and innovative companies. He started his career at Apple, and later served as eBay’s first attorney during a time of tremendous growth in the online world. In 2002, he founded Exclusive Resorts with his brother Brent and served as the company’s CEO and Chairman. Brad continues to bring his passion for entrepreneurship to a number of private companies. He is a lecturer at Stanford Law School and the University of Virginia School of Law. Brad earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania, a bachelor’s degree from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, and a juris doctorate from the University of Virginia School of Law.

Patrick Hanes is the President and co-founder of International Development Resources, Incorporated (IDRI). For the past 9 years, IDRI has been assisting resort developers in creating and implementing integrated business plans with an emphasis on the efficient sales and marketing of fractional and vacation ownership real estate. Mr. Hanes spent the last twenty years in the resort real estate industry. He has held senior management and consulting positions with companies such as Raimon Land (Thailand), IFA Hotels & Resorts (Dubai & South Africa), Hilton Grand Vacations (Hawaii), the Star Resort Group, Pahio Vacation Ownership Inc., AIG Global Real Estate, Raintree Resorts International, The Pharos Group and Equity Lifestyle Properties.

Mr. Hanes is considered to be one of the shared ownership industry’s leading authorities on the start-up and ongoing operation of private residence club, high-end fractional and conventional timeshare projects. Fractional teams that Mr. Hanes has assembled have won over forty American Resort Developer Association (ARDA) awards. Mr. Hanes has been a speaker at several ARDA conferences. Mr. Hanes has also been an invited speaker at three Ragatz Fractional symposiums and at the first annual Alternative Ownership Conference Asia, Pacific (AOCAP) held in Phuket Thailand in 2009.

Mr. Hanes received his Bachelors Degree from the University of California at Santa Barbara and resides with his wife Cheryl in Bigfork, Montana. For more information about Mr. Hanes and his company, IDRI, please visit www.idri.net.

Kevin Kelly is the founder and owner of Civano Living, a lifestyle-oriented boutique resort real estate advisory firm and Civano Development, LLC, a sustainable master-plan development company.

Kevin was the President and Chief Branding Officer for Canyon Ranch, primarily involved with the company’s international brand expansion and product development.

He has 30 years of experience in real estate and community economic development and provides consultation services to some of the largest development and hospitality companies in the U.S and abroad. His lifestyle expertise includes wellness programming and sustainable design.

Randy Koss is currently a principal of Pronghorn Resort and Club in Bend, Oregon and is responsible for spearheading the partnership’s future plans for the build out of the resort.

Randy has worked in all aspects of real estate asset management, development, acquisition, operations, and finance for over 23 years. Most recently, he worked for 11 years as an Executive Director for the Morgan Stanley Real Estate Funds where he was actively involved in the oversight of the fund’s investments in the Western United States, Hawaii, and Mexico. His primary focus was in master planned communities, resorts, land/commercial development, as well as individual commercial properties. Specifically, he was responsible for the Woodlands in Texas, Princeville Resort in Kauai, and several developments with East West Partners in California and Colorado. In addition, Randy was responsible in the oversight of large operating companies that were responsible for carrying out the strategic direction of the investments. Prior to working for Morgan Stanley, Randy spent eleven years with The Macerich Company, working in various capacities including three years in finance, five years as a general manager and three years as an asset manager and development manager.

Randy is a graduate of UCLA in Economics/Business and earned his MBA at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business.

Dr. Stephen Kraus is Chief Research and Insights Officer of Ipsos Mendelsohn, and leads the design, analysis and interpretation of the Mendelsohn Affluent Survey, a 35-year tracking study of Affluent consumers. Steve has spent two decades studying human behavior, and has authored three books on success and affluence in America. His book The New Elite: Inside the Minds of the Truly Wealthy was called “indispensable to marketers” by Publisher’s Weekly. His next book – Selling to the New Elite – earned rave reviews for its insightful exploration of passion as the fundamental principle underlying sales excellence, wealth accumulation, and the world’s most elite luxury brands. With Ipsos Mendelsohn President Bob Shullman, Steve writes monthly columns on media, social trends and affluence for Ad Age and MediaPost. Steve formerly directed the well-known Yankelovich Monitor study of consumer values, and his insights are regularly quoted in the media. A former professor, Steve received his Ph.D. in social psychology from Harvard University, and twice won Harvard’s award for teaching excellence.

Mac MacEwan is a principal in MacEwan & Frank • Marketing & Sales, an independent firm that provides sales, marketing, and product development consultation for developers of destination resort real estate offerings.

Mr. MacEwan has a full-service advertising agency background, having served as an officer in three Seattle firms over a period of sixteen years; managing marketing and advertising programs for such diverse and recognizable Northwest-based national brands as Nordstrom, Roffe Skiwear, Reinell Boats and the Seattle Mariners Baseball Club.

Drawing on the consumer-centric orientation of those and other successful marketers, he has, over the past twenty years become a recognized industry expert in the development of multi-faceted sales, marketing and lead generation programs specifically tailored to the relationship selling approach of resort real estate.

Mr. MacEwan, was born and raised in Seattle, and is a graduate of Seattle University. He and his wife, Lynn, reside in Boise, Idaho.

Keith Marlow has been with Timbers Resorts since its inception in 1999 and is the Director of Sales, managing all aspects of real estate sales within a well known portfolio of private luxury resorts. Most include high-end residence clubs and several include the development of a boutique hotel with whole ownership residential offerings.

Timbers Resorts’ properties include Esperanza Resort in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico; The Timbers Club at Snowmass in Colorado, The Rocks Luxury Residence Club in Scottsdale, Arizona; Castello di Casole in Tuscany, Italy; The Preserve at Botany Bay in the US Virgin Islands; One Steamboat Place in Steamboat Springs, Colorado; The Orchard at The Carneros Inn in Napa, California; The Villas at Rancho Valencia in Rancho Santa Fe, California; The Cottages at Doonbeg in County Clare, Ireland; and the newest The Sebastian in Vail, Colorado.

Keith began his career in commercial appraisal before moving to Aspen, Colorado and working in real estate brokerage. Keith is a graduate of The Ohio State University with a degree in finance. He, his wife and two children reside in Carbondale, Colorado.

Marissa Mastroianni joined Cotton & Company, a Florida-based sales and marketing firm, in 2010 as the Social Marketing Director. Prior to joining Cotton & Company, Marissa worked in the consumer practice division of MSLGroup. While at MSLGroup, she worked on the social marketing campaigns for Proctor & Gamble’s Swiffer and Mr. Clean brands, as well as PUMA. These consumer products were among the first to utilize social marketing.

A graduate of Babson College with a BS in Economics & Marketing, Marissa is ushering in a new medium of communication to the real estate development industry. “Word of mouth has always been one of the strongest forms of marketing. Today, WOM is happening online every minute. Your consumers are sharing information and talking about your products online. Social marketing is designed to make sure your brand has a voice in this conversation.”

Specializing in destination resort real estate and publisher of the annual Cotton Report, Cotton & Company is a leader in utilizing new media and enhanced sales channels to target real estate consumers.

Gary Moore is the Managing Director for Timbers Resorts, responsible for overseeing several of the Timbers Resorts active projects and business development. Gary joined Timbers Resorts in 2000, participating in the early development stages of its premier namesake property, The Timbers Club, in Snowmass Village, CO. As one of the first ownership representatives at The Timbers Club, Gary contributed to its industry success story, having sold out within two years of the initial opening. Following his role in sales, Gary moved into development for Timbers Resorts, serving as Project Director for Esperanza Resort in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, and establishing business operations and project strategy for The Rocks Luxury Residence Club in Scottsdale, AZ. He successfully organized the overall development and sales program at each resort, both of which were completed and sold out within a three-year time span. Gary also assumed an active role in the initial acquisition and strategic planning with The Preserve at Botany Bay in the US Virgin Islands and One Steamboat Place in Steamboat Springs, CO. Prior to taking on the Managing Director Role, Gary was the Project Director for Castello di Casole in Tuscany Italy overseeing all sales operations, construction, design, resort operations and administration.

Michael Murphy has been active for over thirty years in all aspects of hospitality industry transactions. He has extensive experience in hotel acquisitions, development, property sales, finance and joint ventures as well as in corporate mergers and acquisitions. He has held executive positions with Holiday Inns, Inc., Metric Partners, Geller & Co. and ResortQuest International, Inc. where his roles have ranged from Chief Investment Officer to Managing Partner in charge of hotel acquisitions, sales and finance. In addition to principal activities he was responsible for the investment banking operations of Metric Partners and as Senior Managing Director of Geller & Co. led numerous asset management assignments on behalf of institutional lodging owners.

He holds a BS in English from the University of Memphis and an MA in English from the University of Iowa. He is a past member of the Recreational Development Council of the Urban Land Institute, is a member of and has served three times as Co-Chairman of the Industry Real Estate Finance Advisory Council (IREFAC) of the American Hotel and Lodging Association and is a member of the Board of Directors of Ashford Hospitality Trust (AHT:NYSE). He is a founding member of the Board of Directors of the Atlanta Hospitality Alliance.

Richard L. Norton, President of NORTON CONSULTING, Inc, has over 30 years of experience conducting tourism development and real estate studies in Norton America, Mexico, Central America, South America and the Caribbean. Examples of the types of services that Norton Consulting provides include:

- Strategic development studies for new resort and tourism destinations
- Market and financial feasibility studies of major land uses including real estate, hospitality, recreation, attractions, golf, tennis and spa
- Repositioning analysis of existing resort properties in a constantly evolving market
- Analysis of disposition of major assets including unsold properties and existing hotels and amenities
- Participation as part of a multi-disciplinary team of consultants including land planners, engineers, and architects to create market driven and economically based master plans

Mr. Norton enjoys the creative aspects of the master planning process and ensuring that the planning and development team examine all potential opportunities as well as understand how to address realistic project constraints. Over the past 30 years Mr. Norton has provided consulting services to a wide range of private and public sector clients. Private clients include developers, operators, marketing and sales companies, investment banks and capital funds. Public sector clients include local, state and federal government.

Howard C. Nusbaum is currently the president and chief executive officer of the American Resort Development Association (ARDA), the Washington D.C.-based professional association representing the vacation ownership and resort development industries.

Prior to joining ARDA in 2000, Nusbaum served as director of Corporate and Industry Relations for the American Hotel & Lodging Association as well as executive vice president of the Ohio Hotel & Lodging Association. Before joining the world of hotel association management in 1990, he was vice president of marketing for Janus Hotels and Resorts, a hotel management company with more than 50 hotels and motels nationwide.

Nusbaum is a past board member of the Educational Institute of the American Hotel & Lodging Association. He received the Educational Institute’s “Lamp of Knowledge” for his development of hospitality training programs. Additional honors include being twice named (1995 and 1997) The Ohio Vocational Education Association “Person of the Year” for his work developing a curriculum for secondary school hospitality students. He received national recognition for his development of the very successful HOST Welfare-to-Work Program.

He serves on the Board of Directors of the U.S. Travel Association and its Executive Committee. He previously served on the Board of the Travel Business Roundtable. He is a graduate of the University of Cincinnati. Post collegiate education includes the respected Institute for Organization Management, a six-year program for association executives held at the University of Notre Dame. Nusbaum served his state hotel association executives as chairman of the International Society of Hotel Association Executives (ISHAE).

Chris Payne is a partner in the Denver office of Ballard Spahr LLP, and a member of the firm’s Resort and Hotel Group, Distressed Real Estate Initiative, and International Law Group. Chris is also a Chairman’s League member of the American Resort Development Association (ARDA) and an active member of the governing council for the Colorado Bar Real Estate Section.

Mr. Payne represents clients, including Timbers Resorts, in all phases of real estate development, construction and financing transactions, with an emphasis on resort, hotel and mixed-use projects. Much of his present work involves advising developers of fractional ownership projects, private residence clubs and vacation communities, as well as new products in the timeshare industry. Chris currently represents clients in the development of hotel and residential resort projects, often including golf, ski, spa, or marine amenities, throughout the Rocky Mountain region, as well as projects in Mexico, Italy and the Caribbean.

Mr. Payne is a graduate of the University of California (Santa Cruz, B.A. honors; Los Angeles, M.A. Urban Planning and Architecture) and earned his J.D. from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law (Order of St. Ives) where he was a member of the Board of Editors for the Denver University Law Review.

Jeffrey Peters, BA cum Laude in Government, Harvard College, Cambridge, Massachusetts; MA, University of the Americas, Puebla, Mexico; Independent candidate for President of the US, 2000; President and CEO, The US-Mexican Development Corporation and USMDC, Inc.

The US-Mexican Development Corporation , founded in 1978 by Jeffrey B. Peters, has successfully completed over 100 US-Mexican business transactions, including eight hotel resort projects. USMDC serves as a new business development consultant and assists clients in major export transactions, selecting partners, mergers and acquisitions, equity and debt financing, debt collection, buying and selling companies. USMDC is the leader in developing “world class retirement communities in Mexico, with medical care offered in English”.

Steven D. Peterson is a partner in the Salt Lake City office of Ballard Spahr LLP, a Philadelphia based law firm which also has offices in Atlanta, Baltimore, Bethesda, Denver, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, New Jersey, Phoenix, San Diego, Washington, DC, and Wilmington, DE. He is Co-Chair of the Firm’s Resorts and Hotels Group. He is an ARDA Trustee and also serves on the Federal Issues Committee, the Audit Committee and Co-Chairs the Fractional Forum of ARDA.

Mr. Peterson concentrates his practice in a broad spectrum of real estate and hospitality law, including resort development, timesharing, fractionals, equity and non-equity club structures, and other forms of vacation ownership, condominiums, real estate finance, planned community development, ski resorts, golf course development, and zoning. A native of Utah, Mr. Petersen received a Bachelor of Arts degree, Master of Arts Degree and his Juris Doctor degree from Brigham Young University.

Ed Powers is principal consultant for Service Excellence Partners, helping service organizations improve results by making strategic management systems and processes work better. Ed’s 25 years professional experience includes sales, marketing, quality, operations, executive management, and consulting.

Ed was a co-founder, President, and Chief Operating Officer for Lifestyle Asset Group, pioneering collective asset ownership of luxury second homes. He previously served as Executive Vice President of Operations and co-founder of Private Escapes Destination Clubs. There he was responsible for member services, property operations, and information technology functions. Under his leadership, the company delivered the highest customer loyalty at the lowest comparable operating cost in the sector. The firm was acquired by Ultimate Resort in 2009.

Ed is a certified Six Sigma Black Belt and an Examiner for the Malcolm Baldrige National Performance Excellence Program. He is an Examiner and a member of the board of directors for Rocky Mountain Performance Excellence, the Western states’ Baldrige program. Ed is an award-winning trainer and has spoken at Quest for Excellence, Rocky Mountain Quality Conference, the American Society for Quality, Colorado State University, and the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business.

Richard L. Ragatz, Ph.D. is President of Ragatz Associates. His academic background includes a Bachelor’s degree (1961) and a Master’s degree (1963) from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Ph.D. degree in City and Regional Planning (1969) from Cornell University.

Dr. Ragatz has been very active in the primary trade association representing the resort industry – the American Resort Development Association. He joined ARDA in 1969, the year it was formed. He has been given several special awards by ARDA for outstanding contributions to the resort industry, including Industry Leader of the Year and the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award.

His Ph.D. dissertation from Cornell in 1969 is recognized as the first national study on vacation homes ever conducted in the United States. Since 1969, he has published more than 50 articles on resort development for academic journals and trade magazines. He also has delivered more than 350 speeches on resort development at conferences held throughout the world.

Dr. Ragatz has achieved international recognition as the leading feasibility analyst and market researcher in the resort real estate industry. He has been involved in more than 2,500 studies in virtually every state and over 70 countries. Clients include most major developers and lenders in the resort industry. Areas of specialty include feasibility analysis, consumer and product research, economic impact analysis and project assessment.

Grant Sedgwick is the President of Ragatz Resort Realty, commercial resort brokerage and sister company to Resort Equities. Grant Sedgwick has acquired, financed and built major real estate projects, and managed development teams, for more than 30 years. Recently he served as general partner in resort and hospitality projects in Georgia, Pennsylvania and California. Grant is currently a real estate advisor to Classic Residence Management, LP (an affiliate of Hyatt Hotels Corporation) which owns and operates luxury seniors’ housing communities. He is also co-founder and president of Rosedale Communities, a developer of seniors’ housing and care facilities in Silicon Valley. Earlier in his career Grant served as president of Kimball Small Properties, where he managed the development of the Fairmont Hotel in San Jose and the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Santa Clara. Among his many other real estate projects are high-rise and suburban office buildings, shopping centers and business parks, as well as the Hayes Mansion Conference Resort in San Jose and the Pasadera Golf & Country Club in Monterey. Grant is a graduate civil engineer. He served as a member of the San Jose 2020 General Plan Task Force, and was a founding board member of Joint Venture: Silicon Valley as well as president of the Silicon Valley chapter of NAIOP.

Corey Simpson is Digital Marketing Manager for Timbers Resorts, where he develops and oversees the company’s strategy across all digital channels including websites, email marketing, blogs, social media, Search Engine Optimization, paid search and mobile. Prior to his position with Timbers Resorts, Corey was Director of Internet Marketing and Operations for National Geographic Maps where he acquired significant experience in brand management, business development and e-commerce. He was also Co-Founder of Trekking America, an Online Guide to America’s Outdoors, which was syndicated to America Online, the Denver Post and the National Park Service. A graduate of the University of Colorado, he has traveled extensively throughout Europe and Asia and has resided for the past five years in Carbondale, Colorado.

Timbers Resorts is a developer and operator of luxury boutique resorts, private residence clubs and hotels with properties in the U.S., Mexico, and Europe.

Angee Smithee has been a distinguished leader in The Spa and Wellness Industry with over 15 years of Spa Management and Development. She has gained recognition by establishing corporate financial strategies as a Controller, driving guest service initiatives, conceptual development for unique spas that reflect their surroundings and enhancing existing properties by refining current operations. She has worked at notable properties such as The Arizona Biltmore, Caesars Palace, Trump International Miami Beach Resort, The Spa and Fitness Club at South Coast Plaza and currently serves as the Spa Director at Hyatt Regency Scottsdale Resort and Spa at Gainey Ranch.

Angee places an equal emphasis on leadership development, education and training, strategic marketing and profitability. Under her leadership, her spas and teams have earned accolades with Spa Magazine being named a leading spa of the West Coast, listed as a Forbes Super Club, Trump International Manager Award, Voted Best of Citysearch and Voted People’s Choice and Editors Choice in several local publications and most recently #1 in Ranking Arizona and Travel + Leisure top 20 for US and Canada. Angee served two years on the Advisory Board for The Spa and Resort Expo and Conference and has been an educator, guest speaker and panel expert for ISPA, The Spa and Resort Expo and featured in radio, internet and cable interviews as an authority in the spa industry.

Arthur O. Spaulding, Jr. is a partner at Cox, Castle & Nicholson’s Irvine Office in California. Cox Castle, an LA based law firm, commands one of the largest concentrations of attorneys in the U.S. focused on the real estate and financial services industries.

Mr. Spaulding is a senior real estate partner with extensive experience in the acquisition, disposition, financing and development of real estate projects. Since 1980, Mr. Spaulding has been actively involved in all aspects of the hospitality industry, with a particular focus on timeshare and fractional ownership projects. A member of the American Resort Development Association since 1980, he served as an ARDA Director from 1989 to 1991 and again from 2005-2007. He was a Founding Director of the International Foundation for Timesharing, serving on its Board from 1984 through 1989. Mr. Spaulding has served on numerous ARDA committees and is the immediate past-Chairman of ARDA’s Ethics Committee. He has lectured widely in the field of resort, fractional ownership and timeshare development, including all aspects of program structure, acquisitions, dispositions, entity structuring, financing, restructuring and state regulatory and registration work.

At present, Mr. Spaulding concentrates on matters involving hotels, fractional vacation resort ownership, points-based vacation clubs, timeshare development and finance. He has structured resort and urban club systems and supervised the registration of such systems at the state level. Much of his work involves mixed use projects having both hotel and vacation ownership aspects. In the current economic environment, Mr. Spaulding has also focused on issues related to distressed real estate loans, loan portfolios, Real Estate Owned property and the repositioning and disposition of such assets.

A graduate of Yale University, Mr. Spaulding received his J.D. from UCLA. He is admitted to practice in both California and Nevada.

Steve Tassler is a respected authority on Interactive Marketing – specifically in applying new media and emerging technology to measurably increase brand awareness, engage buyers, and drive sales for real estate and hospitality clients.

Steve has provided Direct Marketing strategy, execution and tracking to more than 40 high-end fractional and Private Residence Club projects since 2005 – including Capella Pedregal, Calistoga Ranch, The Phillips Club, and Palazzo Tornabuoni.Steve’s early career included management positions at Deer Valley Resort and the prestigious Stein Eriksen Lodge, where his team earned the AAA Five Diamond Award – a first for the state of Utah. Later as an executive at SKI-WEST, a leading online vacation rental company. He was part of the team that increased the size of the company to almost fifty employees by 100% over a twelve month period. He subsequently became a senior director at digital marketing agency GCommerce, where he launched a fractional real estate marketing division and developed innovative new campaign tracking methodologies. He has also served as VP, Interactive Marketing for Aerios; a multi-disciplinary marketing firm.

Currently, Steve is a principal at digital agency Xeputu, where he oversees multi-disciplinary marketing campaigns – whose tactics commonly include Search Engine Optimization, Paid Search, Repeat-Traffic Systems, Online Media Buying, Social Media, and Email Marketing. He is a frequent speaker on marketing, campaign analytics and the integration of online and offline marketing techniques. Among other clients Xeputu is currently managing the online marketing for Mesa del Sol, a 12,000 acre master planned community in Albuquerque, NM under development by Forest City Enterprises, one of the world’s largest developers of residential real estate.

Greg Traxler is a long-time professional in the luxury resort real estate industry with over eighteen years of experience in sales, marketing, property development, and finance of high-end luxury projects in the Western US and Canada. From popular global brands such as Marriott and Hyatt to private projects in the Tahoe area, he has also been instrumental in developing and training successful sales and marketing teams with a focus on a new-age philosophy in team dynamics and positive buying experiences for owners.

Within the shared ownership industry, Greg has helped create and design numerous ownership plans with a focus on providing convenient and flexible use plans for owners and recently helped create and manage the nation’s leading independent fractional project team at Old Greenwood for East West Partners in North Tahoe. Since his move to Tahoe in 1994, he has also traveled extensively to visit resort destinations while serving as Director of Business Development for Resort Funding Inc., consulting for Waterfront Communities on the east coast and as Western Regional Manager for Interval International. He is also a strengths coach via Gallup University, a member of the American Resort Development Association, a Registered Resort Professional, member of The Tahoe Sierra Board of Realtors and has been a frequent speaker at regional resort fractional conferences.

He is a graduate of University of Mississippi and University of Arkansas with a BA in Advertising and Public Relations and MA in Journalism.

Matthew Walker is Executive Vice President of Lowe Destination Development. In addition to providing general strategic direction for the company, Mr. Walker is responsible for the company’s business development efforts as well as oversight of its real estate sales and marketing activities. Mr. Walker joined Lowe Enterprises in 2000 and is a shareholder.

While at Lowe, Mr. Walker has successfully helped to bring several significant projects to the company including its Suncadia, Stowe Mountain Lodge and Grizzly Ranch projects. Mr. Walker has also served as project executive on the Stowe Mountain Lodge project, overseeing project development, design, construction, operations and sales and marketing. Since 2005 Mr. Walker has directed the company’s real estate sales and marketing activities. These include successful sales launches at the Village at Wild Dunes near Charleston, South Carolina; Terranea Resort in Rancho Palos Verdes, California; the Lodge at Suncadia and the Resort at Squaw Creek which at the time was the most successful mountain sales launch in US history. During Mr. Walker’s tenure, Lowe projects have completed more than $400 million in resort and second home real estate sales.

Mr. Walker received his Bachelor of Architecture from Cornell University and his MBA from UCLA. He has taught an MBA real estate development course at UCLA and is actively involved in the Urban Land Institute as the Vice Chair of the Recreation Development Council Silver Flight.

David Waller is Baker Hostetler’s senior hospitality partner in the firm’s Denver office. Dave has worked with developers on shared and whole ownership projects located in urban environments (New York, Chicago, San Francisco), resort destinations (California, Colorado, Florida, Montana, Oregon and Texas), and international locales (Barbados, Belize, Cayman Islands, Jamaica, St. Kitts, and Mexico). More recently, Dave has been busy assisting established and start-up businesses as they explore and implement alternative business models intended to provide new and supplementary travel and vacation options on a cost-efficient basis.

Dave serves on ARDA’s travel club task force and was hired by ARDA-ROC to be the chief legal counsel and to lead the drafting team as it seeks approval of first-of-its-kind regulation for timeshare resales in Colorado (recently introduced as HB 12-1116). Internationally, Dave is an active member of the working committee tasked with rewriting the timeshare laws in St. Maarten and advises on similar efforts in Grenada and Turks & Caicos. Based on Dave’s efforts, the Mexican government recognized Baker Hostetler as a primary (and only law firm) contributor to the new federal regulations governing the sale of shared ownership products.

Dave is licensed in both Colorado and Texas and is a regular speaker at the Shared Ownership Investment Conference, the ARDA Annual Conference and the Ragatz Fractional & Resort Real Estate Conference. Dave also lectures on shared ownership at the University of Denver and at Johnson & Wales University. In his spare time, Dave is the editor and primary contributor to the Hospitality Lawg®, Baker Hostetler’s blog on issues impacting the hospitality industry. Dave’s most recent article in Developments is intended to educate hospitality companies on the legal consequences of a data security breach.

Emily Warner is a Vice President within the Real Estate Collection at Murphy O’Brien Public Relations – a Los Angeles-based agency that specializes in promoting second home, vacation and golf real estate communities, private residence clubs and home developers. Emily skillfully manages PR campaigns for key accounts including Timbers Resorts, JMA Ventures and Sunrise Company. Emily has been with Murphy O’Brien for more than five years and has developed creative PR campaigns resulting in A-list media coverage and increased exposure for her clients.

She is a graduate of The University of Colorado at Boulder with a BA in Public Relations and Communications.

Robert Webb maintains a diverse real estate, business and hospitality law practice with a strong emphasis on international resort development, timeshares, fractionals and private residence clubs, hotels and condominium hotels, second homes, cruise ship and residence vessel programs and the growing international travel and leisure industry. Rob is a regular contributor to Baker Hostetler’s Hospitalitylawg®, which offers commentary and opinions on hospitality industry issues; trends, challenges and news.

Board Certified in Real Estate Law by the Florida Bar since 1987, Rob is the senior member and was the founding leader of the Baker Hostetler Hospitality Industry Team. Rob was instrumental in the creation, design and development of many of today’s leading branded and independent timeshare plans, including the Disney Vacation Club, the Hilton Grand Vacations Club, the Hyatt Vacation Club, the Starwood Vacation Network, the Allegro Vacation Club, Club Navigo and the Four Seasons Residence Club, and he represents one of the leaders in the timeshare resale industry, SeiiMyTimeshareNow, LLC.

Rob has a special interest in international leisure and shared ownership, hotel development and resort management, with an emphasis on mixed-use developments in the Caribbean and Central America. He has been involved over the years in several projects in each of the Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Grenada, Jamaica, Mexico, Puerto Rico, St. Croix, St. John, St. Thomas, St. Kitts and the Turks and Caicos Islands.

Rob has been active since 1981 in the American Resort Development Association (ARDA), the U.S. timeshare trade association. He currently serves as Treasurer of ARDA, as a member of the ARDA Board of Directors and its Executive Committee, as a board member of the ARDA International Foundation, as an ARDA Trustee and as Chair of the ARDA Legislative Council.

During an absence from Baker Hostetler in 2000, Rob served as president of firm client and timeshare developer Island One, Inc.

Sean Zimmerman is the founding partner and responsible for the growth and management of SIA Living’s list of international clients. Sean possesses executive level management experience in sales and asset management in vertical industries including Fortune 500 retail, electronics, and resort real estate development.

Since founding SIA, Sean has led SIA in providing services to clients all over the world at every stage of the development process. Sean’s direct responsibilities in the ventures included market analysis, site selection and acquisitions, financial projections and modeling, the raising of equity capital, the establishment of the pre-development sales and marketing launches and the hiring and training of the on-site sales teams. SIA’s ability to develop efficient and progressive strategies throughout the sales cycle has produced millions in equity for the ventures, and has helped dramatically in the securing of their economic soundness.

Education: B.S. Finance, B.S. International Economics, Minor: Spanish, Graduate of the W.P. Carrey School of Business at Arizona State University.