L to R: Group Director of Hotels Suresh Kumar; Group Managing Director of Commercial Becky Lim and Group Director of Lounges Chamil Liyanage
The pioneer and world leader of airport hospitality Plaza Premium Group named Chamil Liyanage as Group Director of Lounges to lead the operations of Plaza Premium First, Plaza Premium Lounge and Allways airport meet and greet service; Suresh Kumar as Group Director of Hotels to manage Aerotel and Refreshhh by Aerotel brands under the hotel division; and Becky Lim as Group Managing Director of Commercial to spearhead the company’s global commercial product and sales strategy.
“To ensure the best-in-class standard of services in each and every location, we are delighted to have Chamil leading our strong and dedicated Plaza Premium Lounge teams and Suresh will be the key man to manage a young team of passionate hotel associates as Aerotel enters its fourth year of operations.” said Song Hoi-See, Founder and CEO of Plaza Premium Group. “To enhance the commercial synergies and business growth among our global network of over 160 locations in 44 international airports, Becky will lead our sales teams worldwide to take our fast-growing business to the next level, and work closely with our existing and potential partners to develop ideas and unlock customer-centric sales strategies.”
Heading the airport lounge and meet and greet operations, Chamil is responsible for managing the teams throughout the global network in addition to developing and overseeing third-party airport lounge management. A veteran executive in airlines and hospitality industry, Chamil brings 30 years of experience to Plaza Premium Group following his last role as Head of Customer Experience - Lounges and Al Maha Services at Qatar Airways managing 17 airport lounges. His previous experiences included senior roles in food and beverage and operations for Etihad Airways and Emirates Airline, international hotels and private clubs. His career has brought him to many countries and regions including Australia, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Oman, Qatar, India, Sri Lanka, Switzerland and Vietnam. Chamil holds a Master of Business in Event Management from Victoria University of Technology in Melbourne and Hotel Management Post Graduate Degree from Oberoi Centre for Learning & Development in Delhi.
Leading an energetic hotel operations team, Suresh oversees the overall development and operations of Aerotel brand, the world’s largest chain of in-terminal airport hotels. He brings with him 24 years of hospitality experience in hotel operations and corporate roles with internationally renowned hotel groups, including Shangri-La, InterContinental Hotels, Mulia Hotels, Alila Hotels & Resorts, Ascott Residences and independent luxury hotel brands in China. His career has taken him to many places outside his home country Malaysia including Hong Kong, China, Fiji, Philippines and Indonesia. He has vast working experience in China having worked in Suzhou, Nanjing, Changzhou, Sanya and Shanghai, where he held General Manager roles in four hotels including three opening hotels. Suresh is a graduate of Institute Hotelier “Cesar Ritz” in Switzerland and speaks English, Mandarin and Bahasa Malaysia.
With more than 20 years of international experience in product development, management, marketing, customer loyalty, strategy and negotiation, Becky is responsible for leading a global sales team, overseeing sales product development, devising pricing strategy, and identifying new market opportunities. Her previous career saw her managing products and portfolios across Asia Pacific, Europe, Central Europe and Middle East. Prior to joining Plaza Premium Group, she was Chief Executive Officer of DragonPass, Asia Pacific, and held leadership roles at financial organisations including Visa, American Express and DBS Bank.
The executive appointments were made in response to the group’s international expansion including the recent openings of Plaza Premium Lounge in Helsinki, Langkawi and Cebu, the launch of Allways at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, and new additions of Aerotel in London and Beijing as well as the upcoming Plaza Premium Lounge Dubai in November 2019. The combined portfolio of Plaza Premium Group covers 160+ locations in more than 44 international airports across 22 countries and regions.