News & Press

Germantown, Tennessee — June 2024 — McNeill Hotel Company (MHC) and McNeill Investment Group (MIG) today announced the establishment of the Mark A. Ricketts Memorial Scholarship at The University of Memphis Kemmons Wilson School of Hospitality & Resort Management.
Dedicated to the memory of Mark Ricketts, who co-founded McNeill Hotel Company in 2014 with Phillip McNeill, Jr., the scholarship will aid at least one undergraduate student, beginning in 2025, committed to a career in hospitality. A courageous and most loved leader, Ricketts passed away on November 2, 2022, after a brave battle with ALS. 

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Did you know that McNeill Hotel Company manages Ocean Grove RV Resort in St. Augustine Beach, FL? Campspot recently recognized Ocean Grove RV Resort as the number 3 property in the US out of 2300+ campgrounds on their marketing platform. Campgrounds were reviewed for key characteristics such as reservation data, ratings, park features, and Campspot Marketplace quality in order to create the annual list of award-winning parks.
You can see the list here: Campspot Awards
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By Annie Mulvanny, VP of Investments and Asset Management.
With some economic uncertainty in the future and potential for shocks relating to the upcoming presidential election and ongoing wars in Europe and the Middle East, it is not time to abandon expense discipline. Even as revenue per available room is forecast to increase across most markets in 2024, the rise in expenses is making it more difficult to achieve the same profit margins.
There are several ways operators, asset managers, and hotel owners are combating these issues, including in the areas of technology, labor and guest services.
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McNeill Investment Group welcomes Annie Mulvanny as its new vice president, investments and asset management. With MIG, Mulvanny will contribute to the current expansion of the firm’s multi-faceted investment management platform. 
“We are fortunate to have Annie join us as McNeill continues to expand our robust talent pool and execute our multi-faceted investment growth strategy,” MIG Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Chris Ropko said in a statement. “She brings to McNeill outstanding experience in all phases of hospitality real estate investment, including sales and marketing, acquisitions, transaction structuring and asset management.”

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By Travis Murray
Even though the United States boasts numerous exceptional independent hotels, approximately two-thirds of the country's 60,000 hotels are still associated with a brand. Additionally, the number of rooms being constructed for unaffiliated hotels was only around 30,000 at the end of last year, which is significantly lower than the 131,000 rooms being built for branded and franchised properties. There are many compelling reasons for the predominance of branded properties, both in the United States and globally, some of which will be considered in this column. 
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During the "Views From the Boardroom" panel at the 2023 Americas Lodging Investment Summit Summer Update in Atlanta, McNeill Investment Group CEO Chris Ropko said the economy has effectively been on the brink for the past two years. "'Oh, well the downturn is going to happen in the back half of the year' — I think we all said that last year and the year before," he said. See the full article by clicking either of the links below.

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Valerie Bolton and Deanne Frame co-authored this article for Hotel Executive. They explore the lessons learned through the pandemic and evolution of Human Resource Management in recent years. Here is an excerpt: "With a distinct understanding of our mission of being people serving people, we were positioned well to build trust and cohesiveness between Human Resources and Operations. This allowed us to be more prepared and nimbler in navigating the pandemic." To learn more, click below.

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Valerie Bolton, Executive VP of Human Resources, is quoted in this article for the Wall Street Journal. She shares about our Career Development programs at our hotels. Click the links below to learn more.

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Chris Ropko has faced two monumental challenges since taking the reigns at McNeill Investment Group: Steer the company through a strategic shift and try to fill the void left in the wake of founder Mark Ricketts' death.

Ropko, CEO of McNeill Investment Group and McNeill Hotel Company, said the shift in investment strategy marks the third iteration of the company since its founding nearly a decade ago by Ricketts and Phillip McNeill, Jr. The transformation was driven in part by a new capital partnership with Almanac Realty Investors.

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Hoteliers Say Technology Should Make Employees More Productive, Not Replace Them
Chris Ropko shares his thoughts throughout this article. 
Ropko said hospitality is a tangible business with the ethos of personally serving another person.
“To the extent that we can harness that technology and those advancements, not to act as a surrogate for the people or degrade or diminish the guest experience but to act as a productivity tool for our people — we embrace that wholeheartedly,” he said.

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McNeill Investment Group (MIG), formerly McNeill Hotel Investors, has entered into a strategic partnership with Prospect Ridge, a national private equity real estate investor, and Fulcrum Hospitality, a hospitality investment operating partner, advisor and asset manager.

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Sussan Harshbarger's latest article appears in Hotel News Now. Excerpt: "At McNeill Hotel Company, we have a sincere interest in and commitment to each individual and her or his potential for career growth with us. Our employees make us a stronger company and allow us to succeed in providing better guest experiences."

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Certainly, the pandemic encouraged an industry where people are invited to come together to become even more "space conscious."

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Memphis Business Journal shares a profile of Sussan Harshbarger, Chief Legal Officer, McNeill Investment Group. Harshbarger provides comments regarding her background and recent transition to McNeill Investment Group.

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