Visionaries

Simon Sinek —

“To inspire people to do the things that inspire them so that, together, each of us can change our world for the better.”

Simon Sinek is an unshakable optimist who believes in a bright future and our ability to build it together. He discovered remarkable patterns about how the greatest leaders and organizations think, act and communicate.

Gary Vaynerchuk —

“Live your passion.”

Gary Vaynerchuk is a serial entrepreneur and the CEO and co-founder of VaynerMedia, a full-service digital agency servicing Fortune 500 clients across the company’s four locations. He is a venture capitalist, four-time New York Times bestselling author, and an early investor in companies such as Twitter, Tumblr, Venmo and Uber.

Richard Branson —

“There is no greater thing you can do with your life and your work than follow your passions—in a way that serves the world and you.”

Founder of the Virgin Group, which has gone on to grow successful businesses in sectors including hospitality, travel and transportation, financial services, leisure and entertainment and health and wellness. Virgin is a leading international investment group and one of the world's most recognized and respected brands.

Horst Schulze —

“Give people a purpose, not a job.”

As founding former president and COO of Ritz-Carlton, Horst Schulze established a new standard of excellence in his industry. He energizes organizations to reconnect with their service commitment. Horst Schulze revolutionized the hotel industry, creating one of the most recognizable international brands, forever altering the very nature of customer service by creating a culture of “ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen.” A man of rare ability and prophetic vision and raising the bar for customer service expectations to previously unimagined levels, Schulze himself was named “Corporate Hotelier of the World” by HOTELS magazine.

Danny Meyer —

“Hospitality, like life, is all about how you make people feel. It’s that simple, and it’s that hard.”

Born and raised in St. Louis, Danny Meyer grew up in a family that relished great food and hospitality. Thanks to his father’s travel business, which designed custom European trips, Meyer spent much of his childhood eating and visiting near and far-off places. In 1985, at the age of 27, Meyer opened his first restaurant, Union Square Cafe. He focused heavily on customer satisfaction, laying the groundwork for his 2006 New York Times bestseller Setting the Table, which looks at the power of hospitality in restaurants, business, and life.

Anna Dolce —

“Service is a skill, hospitality is a spirit.”

Anna Dolce is a life and business strategist, hospitality expert, writer and keynote speaker. After getting her start in the restaurant industry, Anna observed that often the biggest missing piece in hospitality industry is in fact, the hospitality. Fueled by deeply rooted culture of hospitality and social connectedness she grew up with in Georgia, Anna went on to help business owners lead from the heart and build businesses that last. Anna is an outspoken hospitality pro, who believes everything is a matter of heart, especially business. She is uncompromising when it comes to authenticity and spirit of hospitality in any business.

Bobby Stuckey —

“Hospitality is not something you turn on when you walk on the floor, it is a part of your lifestyle.”

During his five-year tenure at The Little Nell as a sommelier, the restaurant received numerous awards for wine and service, including Gourmet’s “Best Wine Service” Award; Mobile Travel Guide’s Five Star Hotel and Restaurant Rating; Wine Spectator’s Grand Award; and a nomination from the James Beard Foundation for Outstanding Wine Service.

After spending time with Thomas Keller at the French Laundry in Yountville, California and earning his Master Sommelier Diploma from the Court of Master Sommeliers in 2004. Stuckey co-founded his first restaurant, Frasca Food and Wine in 2004, and walks the dining room nightly, enthusiastically dispensing advice, recommendations, and sharing his passion for wine with Frasca guests.”

Jerry Inzerillo —

“We are innkeepers serving innkeepers”

Jerry Inzerillo is a celebrated visionary recognized for his trademark innovation and his extensive network of global contacts in tourism, hospitality, entertainment, business and governmental affairs, cultivated during his five-decades-long career. As CEO of Forbes Travel Guide from 2014 to 2018, he was successful in the globalization from the company’s North American origins to more than 100 countries worldwide. The Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star Award is universally accepted as the Olympic gold medal of hospitality.