Romanian investors bring Belgian executive to manage their hotel business

Belgian executive Christine Schillings will take over as general manager of Ana Hotels, one of the top 3 hotel companies in Romania – owned by local investor George Copos. She will replace Alexandra Copos de Prada, George Copos’ daughter, who has decided to leave the company’s helm after two years. Christine Schillings has 30 years of experience in the hospitality industry, having worked for Hilton Worldwide group. Hilton also manages Ana Hotels’ flagship hotel, Athénée Palace Hilton, in downtown Bucharest. In fact, she was part of the management team that opened the Athénée Palace Hilton in 1997. In the past 16 years, Schillings has been Regional Director Hilton Worldwide and she coordinated the management of 46 hotels in Eastern Europe, Turkey, Russia, and Israel. Before that she worked in the group’s hotels in France, Germany, and Great Britain. She graduated from the Hotel Management School din Brussels, in 1984, and then specialized in asset management and project management at Cornell University. Alexandra Copos de Prada decided to withdraw from the company’s executive team, which she has been coordinating since March 2014, will remain a member of the board. She will also continue to manage the family’s Ana Pan bakery and pastry shop chain, which she has been developing in recent years. Under her management, Ana Hotels reached a turnover of almost EUR 30 million, in 2015, its highest since 2008. In 2014, the company had revenues of EUR 25 million and a net profit of close to EUR 2 million, according to data from the Finance Ministry. Ana Hotels owns 7 upscale and luxury hotels in Bucharest, Poiana Brasov, and Eforie Nord. The company has a capacity of 975 rooms and 710 employees. The company’s biggest local competitors in terms of revenues are Bucuresti Turism, the owner of the Radisson blu and Park Inn hotels in Bucharest, and Societatea Companiilor Hotelire Grand, which owns the JW Marriott Bucharest hotel. Andrei Chirileasa, andrei@romania-insider.com