Atmosphere Gears Up For Expansion — Welcomes A Stellar Line Up Of Senior Industry Veterans

Joining the leadership team are Michel Politano as VP Revenue & Distribution, Sarah Walker Kerr as VP Communications, Ashley Goddard as Corporate Culinary Director and Silvia Collepardi as VP Sales & Marketing – COLOURS OF OBLU & By Atmosphere.

Dubai, United Arab Emirates – 7th March 2022: Atmosphere Hotels & Resorts (AH&R), a dynamic and fast-growing hospitality company, starts the year on a winning note with four key leadership appointments to support its ambitious development plans.

Atmosphere’s strategic onboarding of top talent to its senior leadership team includeMichel Politano as VP Revenue & Distribution, Sarah Walker Kerr as VP Communications, Ashley Goddard as Corporate Culinary Director and Silvia Collepardi as VP Sales & Marketing for COLOURS OF OBLU & By Atmosphere.

Coming from the finest hospitality brands across the globe, these accomplished leaders add to the company’s growth momentum. Helping to take its three brands, THE OZEN COLLECTION, COLOURS OF OBLU and By Atmosphere, to alluring leisure destinations in India, Bhutan, Nepal and Sri Lanka.

Ashley Goddard – Corporate Culinary Director

Taking up the newly created role of Corporate Culinary Director, Ashley Goddard will drive brand distinction and corporate reputation by refining dining experiences throughout Atmosphere’s portfolio of resorts. He will mentor and develop the company’s culinary teams, enhance existing Food and Beverage experiences, and contribute to launching of our new openings and projects in the current pipeline. 

During his successful career spanning over 30 years, this Australian Chef & Culinary Entrepreneur has worked with some of the leading international hospitality companies, immersing in cultures across the globe. Having been a part of different cultures has enriched Ashley’s palette for life – allowing him to develop world-class culinary teams, in numerous countries and throughout reputed hotels and resorts. “I believe raising both the perception of our guests, as well the expectation of a truly memorable dining experience, we are lucky to touch so many people and bring the Joy of Giving” says Ashley Goddard.

Silvia Collepardi – VP Sales & Marketing for COLOURS OF OBLU & By Atmosphere

Silvia Collepardi has been promoted to Vice President Sales & Marketing for the company’s recently launched brand COLOURS OF OBLU as well as By Atmosphere. In her new role, Silvia will focus on strengthening brand positioning in key feeder markets across the globe and developing new markets.

Hailing from Italy, Silvia joined AH&R in 2018 as Regional Director of Sales Europe. She offers a wealth of expertise acquired over 16 years of sales and marketing experience, including senior positions at international brands like Centara Hotels & Resorts. Her love for oceans has inspired Silvia to focus her expertise on promoting dream destinations and beautiful resorts in the Maldives, Thailand and Bali, with a passion for pre-opening and business development.

Michel Politano – Vice President Revenue & Distribution

In the role of VP Revenue & Distribution, French national Michel Politanowill work towards maximising revenue, enhancing channel connectivity and profitability, and optimising online presence, traffic acquisition and conversion.

An impactful leader with 15 years of hands-on experience, Michel excels in implementing unique and highly effective market strategies, successfully entering new markets and providing value-based leadership.

He has most recently held senior leadership positions at Emaar Hospitality Group, where he set up and grew the entire distribution ecosystem (spanning 20+ hotels across 4 brands) and contributed to organisational growth by leading change management of cluster structure.

Sarah Walker Kerr – Vice President Communications

Recently appointed, Sarah Walker Kerr has hit the ground running – steering the company’s

communication strategy with a focus on promoting brand distinction. With over 20 years of international experience, UK-born Sarah is adept at setting up and managing global integrated communication programs that drive guest engagement, elevate corporate identity and build brand equity.

Sarah comes to Atmosphere from Marriott International, where she spent 3 years as VP Communications, achieving positive awareness (externally and internally) and brand distinction. As part of this role, she set up a fit for purpose communications organisation across complex geography of 30 countries. She was ranked among the Top 25 ‘Most Influential Communicators in the Middle East’ by PR Week UK.

Salil Panigrahi, Managing Director Atmosphere Hotels & Resortssaid “As we prepare for our next phase of expansion, we are thrilled to welcome such outstanding talent to our senior leadership team. I am eager to see how their depth and breadth of collective experience will help us drive brand distinction, foster culinary excellence, elevate our reputation, reach new markets and unlock our immense growth potential.”

These appointments build upon the new additions last year of Ashwin Handa as Senior Vice President Operations and Abhijit Ghosh as Senior Vice President – Creative & Quality Assurance.

Picture Caption: L to R – Ashley Goddard, Silvia Collepardi, Michel Politano and Sarah Walker Kerr