Playa Hotels & Resorts appointed Fernando Mulet as EVP and chief development officer. Mulet will report to Playa’s chairman and CEO, Bruce Wardinski, and will continue to serve as a member of the company’s executive team.
Mulet is a founding member of the Playa management team, beginning with the company at its inception in 2006.
“Fernando has been instrumental in Playa’s growth from a pure asset owner to one of the most respected all-inclusive owners, managers and brand partners in the Caribbean and Latin America,” Bruce Wardinski, Playa’s chairman and CEO, said in a statement. His impact to the organization is clear and he has facilitated each of our key strategic alliances; most recently with Hilton in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, and in La Romana, Dominican Republic and with Sagicor in Jamaica. Prior, Fernando helped established our partnership with global lifestyle brand Panama Jack and was instrumental in spearheading Playa’s alliance with Hyatt—the first of its kind in the all-inclusive hospitality sector. We now own or manage assets in many of Mexico’s and the Caribbean’s best beach front locations, and Fernando has championed or contributed to each of these accomplishments.”
Before joining Playa, Mulet was the director of international investments and asset management with Highland Hospitality Corporation. A native of Spain, he began his career in the hospitality industry at Barceló Hotels & Resorts.
Mulet earned his BA at the Universidad Pontificia de Comillas in Madrid and earned a certification in real estate, development and hotels investment from The School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University.
“Our goal is to create long-term stakeholder value through the ownership, management, development and repositioning of both adult-only and family-friendly all-inclusive resorts. Our business model of developing and operating global brands in the all-inclusive sector clearly resonates with consumers and hotel owners alike and we see tremendous growth opportunities through additional acquisitions, partnerships and management contracts," Mulet said in a statement.
As part of Mulet’s expanded role he will oversee the company’s new development office in Cancun, Mexico, as well as the growth of a development team, including the appointment of Nicolas Valle who joins Playa as director of development and feasibility.
Valle will focus almost exclusively on the pursuit of additional management contracts and other asset-light transactions. He will be based in Playa’s Cancun office, which also serves as the company’s hub for sales, marketing and development in Mexico, as well as Central and South America. Valle graduated from Spain’s CSHG Hotel Business School with a degree in hotel management and is currently pursuing the chartered financial analyst designation from the CFA Institute, where he is a 2019 Level III candidate.