In honour of International Women’s Day 2021, meet the female hoteliers taking the travel industry by storm.
Rachel Angell, COO of Domus Stay; Kalia Konstantinidou, founder of the Kanava Hotels and Resorts (the glitterati of Greek Hotels); and Anne Golden, general manager of Pan Pacific London are the powerhouses behind some of the most remarkable projects for travel this year and beyond. Below they spotlight their work and news for 2021.
Rachel Angell, COO of Domus Stay
Rachel is the brains behind Domus Stay which has the keys to London’s most outstanding homes. Previously with Dorchester Collection, Rachel brings a wealth of experience in customer care and service excellence to her role at Domus Stay. Her dedication to the business of luxury hospitality has spanned a twenty-year career, most recently driving the corporate transformation strategy for the UK’s most highly regarded luxury hotel brand.
As we look towards when we can travel once again, there is likely to be a demand for staycations and a boom in short term rental accommodation bookings and Rachel is an expert at speaking about how to bring a travel outlet to launch during a pandemic.
Charged with bringing Domus Stay from dream to reality, Rachel leads her close-knit team with warmth, building relationships grounded in mutual respect, trust and good humour. In Rachel’s capable hands, Domus Stay sets a compelling new benchmark in the luxury arena.
Domus Stay is excited to welcome its first guests to enable them to fall in love with London again.
Anne Golden, general manager at Pan Pacific London
Anne is quietly revolutionising the hotel world in the city of London with the opening of Pan Pacific London. She opened Morgans’ hotels as regional vice president, of which all properties had guests queueing at the door. Now with her newest project, Pan Pacific London – a new landmark tower for the city – Anne aims to represent the changing face of this trendsetting capital.
Seasoned hotelier Anne is at the helm of Pan Pacific London overseeing the first London opening for Pan Pacific Hotels Group. In her role, she manages property operations, business development, brand positioning and revenue management for this luxurious London property, enhancing Pan Pacific Hotels Group’s already well-established reputation and elevated guest experience. Anne also oversees all food and beverage outlets, consolidating the hotel as a dining destination for Londoners and international guests alike.
With considerable London experience working with luxury brands such as Morgans Hotel Group – the original boutique lifestyle brand and hotel disruptor – and Mondrian, Anne has successfully managed new hotel openings and pioneered re-brandings. Through her painstaking attention to detail, vast experience and dedication, she has supported her teams to ensure the hotels were swiftly established as some of the best performing hotels in London.
She is honoured to be spearheading the team who will be bringing Singapore to the city as general manager of Pan Pacific London.
Kalia Konstantinidou, owner of the Kanava Hotels and Resorts (the glitterati of Greek Hotels)
Kalia is at the forefront of the Greek travel industry and is a leading expert, force and voice in the world of luxury travel. She is preparing to open her hotels for this season with experiences that exceed all expectations of the definitive Grecian paradise.
Kalia was born in Athens and holds a BSc in Maritime Studies and International Transport from the University of Wales in Cardiff, while she also holds a MSc in Business Communication and Public Relations from the European University in Switzerland.
Her path in hospitality started when she met her husband, Antonis Eliopoulos, at a shipping event while she was working in PR for a think tank. Antonis had decided a few years ago to buy a rustic vineyard, which he turned into a hotel in 1993 – Vedema, a Luxury Collection Resort, a unique village-like setting in the medieval village of Megalohori.
Kalia debuted her career in the family business, as a PR and communications manager and as the company grew with the addition of more properties in their portfolio, her role evolved to director of sales and marketing. It was the couple’s passion for hospitality that motivated them to take on the iconic Oía village, where they introduced in 2007 Mystique, a Luxury Collection Hotel, a secluded hideaway carved into the rugged caldera cliffs and boasting glorious views to the Aegean archipelago.
The duo knew that their third hotel on the volcanic island, Istoria, a Member of Design Hotels, had to be on the magical black sand beach of Perivolos, where they transformed a former palazzo of a legendary socialite to a serene retreat for sophisticated travellers. Wishing to expand their horizons, they journeyed to the nearby island of Paros for their fourth property, Parīlio, opened in July 2019, where they crafted an artful statement amid a world of pine-fringed coves and white-washed historical villages.
For this summer, they are preparing a brand new project on their beloved island, Cosme Hotel, that sits on the seafront of Agioi Anargyroi and is envisioned to be a celebration of the authentic Mediterranean villages, that will carry the visitors away in time and fill them with a sense of overwhelming serenity.
