Provenance Hotels and affiliates of Gencom, a domestic and international investment and development firm, have formed GenPro, a special purpose hospitality venture. As part of the venture, Provenance will contribute various hotels it owns throughout the U.S., along with cash, while the Gencom affiliates will contribute cash. Jointly led by Provenance Founder and Chairman Gordon Sondland and Gencom Founder Karim Alibhai, the venture will aim to expand through future acquisitions and/or redevelopment opportunities.
GenPro’s hotel assets will be managed by Benchmark Pyramid. Alibhai currently sits on the board of Benchmark Pyramid, and Sondland will also join the board upon the close of Benchmark Pyramid’s acquisition of Provenance, which is expected in the second quarter of 2022.
“The Gencom team brings an entrepreneurial approach and attention to detail and has long been known for its work in the hospitality sector both in management platforms and ownership of hotels across all brands," Sondland said in a statement. "With my nearly four decades of experience in the hotel industry and the friendships, I developed during my tenure as U.S. Ambassador to the European Union, I look forward to sourcing opportunities for GenPro to grow both domestically and internationally.”
GenPro’s initial portfolio of properties includes the Hotel Max in Seattle; the boutique Old No. 77 Hotel & Chandlery in New Orleans; downtown Nashville’s newly renovated Hotel Preston; the Hotel Murano in Tacoma, Wash.'s South Sound; and four downtown Portland, Ore., hotels: the Hotel Deluxe in the Goose Hollow neighborhood; Sentinel in the West End; Hotel Lucia, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places; and the Dossier.