CHAIRMAN of Sandals Resorts International Gordon ‘Butch’ Stewart will receive the inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award at the Caribbean Hotel & Resort Investment Summit (CHRIS) 2017, to be held in April in Miami.
CHRIS is considered the most important event for those interested in hotel and resort investment in the Caribbean.
Having already achieved a long list of accolades, including Jamaica’s highest individual award, the still unassuming Sandals Chairman stands at the helm of the single largest privately owned Caribbean empire that include 24 Sandals and Beaches resorts in Jamaica, Saint Lucia, The Bahamas, Antigua, Grenada, Barbados, and Turks & Caicos. His group of companies also include Appliance Traders Limited (ATL) and publishing company Jamaica Observer.
In announcing the award, the Burba Hotel Network, hosts of CHRIS 2017, commended Mr. Stewart for “innovations that have changed the face of the all-inclusive format and established Sandals Resorts, and now Beaches Resorts, as one of the most successful brands in the category – boasting year-round occupancy levels of more than 85 percent, an unequaled repeat guest factor of 40 percent and demand that has led to unprecedented expansion. By steadfastly adhering to the “We can do better” principle of pleasing guests, Stewart has fostered a company free to imagine and free to consistently raise the bar.”
Stewart entered the tourism arena in 1981 with the sole intention of earning foreign exchange to support his then primary operation – ATL. But with a business model that stood ‘outside the box’ of conventional inclusive operations the world over, Stewart quickly saw his secondary operation become his primary. Today, he stands is the largest private sector employer in Jamaica and the island’s biggest foreign exchange earner – having masterfully achieved a goal set over 35 years ago.
BHN President Jim Burba said his network was pleased to be able to present the inaugural CHRIS Lifetime Achievement Award to the Gordon Arthur ‘Butch’ Stewart. “The success of Sandals has helped to power the growth of the tourism industry and the economies not only in Jamaica but throughout the Caribbean. The word ‘icon’ certainly applies to Butch Stewart and we are delighted to be honouring him with this Award.”
BHN is the worldwide leader in developing and organizing conferences for the hotel and tourism investment community.
Stewart brought the Sandals brand to Saint Lucia 23 years ago, and has since established three resorts on the island. And, like Jamaica, Sandals Resorts in Saint Lucia represent the single largest private sector employer and the island’s biggest foreign exchange earner.
In December 2016, the resort chain announced plans to construct a fourth Sandals Resort in the island and is now nearing completion of the first segment of its over-the-water suites that will, when completed, further complement the revolutionary in tourism and hospitality that is Sandals in the Caribbean.