Paul Walters, General Manager, joins PRINCIPAL from InterContinental Hotels, where he was GM at the five-star InterContinental Sydney from 2015.
Prior to that, Paul spent eight years with the Langham Hospitality Group, including three and a half years as General Manager of The Langham in London, and his CV also includes time with W Hotels and a number of General Manager roles for GHM.
Paula McColgan, Director of Sales & Marketing, was previously at The Lanesborough and was a member of the senior team involved in the refurbishment of the hotel and its repositioning within the new Oetker Collection. Her previous experience includes St Regis and Mandarin Oriental. Jutta Asta, Executive Housekeeper, brings her experience from The Dorchester Collection, The Bulgari Hotel, Claridge’s and Hotel Adlon in Berlin.
The senior team also includes Roger Olsson (Executive Chef, ex-Dorchester Hotel); Richard Stockton (Finance Director, ex-Lanesborough); Melanie Price (People Development Director, ex-Dorchester Collection); Claire O’Reilly (Hotel Manager, ex-Doyle Collection and Soho House New York); and Jeff Hyatt (Director of Engineering, ex-Bulgari).
David Taylor, COO at PRINCIPAL, said: ‘I am thrilled that Paul and the executive team have joined us to open The Principal London. They bring bags of talent and experience with them, and their appointments bear testament to the scale and ambition we have for The Principal London.’
Paul Walters added, ‘The Principal London is one of the last classic grande dame hotels to be brought magnificently back to life, just as Bloomsbury is one of the forgotten neighbourhoods of London. I am sure the multi-million pound refurbishment will put the hotel and the neighbourhod firmly back on the map.’
In addition to the 334 bedrooms and suites, The Principal London will boast a ballroom and eight additional meeting spaces, a Palm Court, destination cocktail bar, neighbourhood restaurant, and Burr & Co. – a coffeehouse by day and wine bar by night. Tara Bernerd Partners are looking after the design of the hotel guest rooms, suites and public areas, whilst Russell Sage Studios are designing the restaurants and bars, with both teams under the creative direction of Kemper Hyers and the PRINCIPAL design studio.
