Cendant Corporation«s Hotel Division today announced the appointment of John Valletta as Travelodge Hotels Inc. president & chief executive officer, replacing Robert T. Foley, who is leaving the company to establish a family business and had been leading the brand on an interim basis.
Valletta comes to Cendant from Prime Hospitality Corp. of Fairfield, N.J., where he served as senior vice president of operations for its Wellesley Inns & Suites chain. Previously, Valletta served LaQuinta Inns Inc. in Dallas as vice president of operations for its Midwest region from 1999 to 2000 and regional manager from 1993 to 1999. He earned LaQuintas Regional Manager of the Year award in 1998 for “outstanding achievement” in operations, team building and leadership.

“John has spent much of the last 30 years in the hotel industry effectively developing and implementing targeted marketing and operations strategies,” said Joseph R. Kane Jr., group president & chief executive officer of Cendant«s Hotel Division. “He is a strong, high-energy leader who will be a great benefit to our franchisees, our systemwide initiatives and the Travelodge bottom line.”

From 1992 to 1993, Valletta was the Northeast area manager for the Motel 6 brand of Accor Lodging North America, Dallas. Valletta was vice president and general manager of the Travelodge Essex House Hotel in Miami Beach, Fla., from 1991 to 1992. From 1988 to 1991, he was vice president & managing partner of the Econo Lodge hotel in Salem, N.H.

“This is an exciting time for the Travelodge chain, considering the recent reorganization of Cendant«s Hotel Division,” Valletta said. “The Travelodge brand has proven its worth as a thriving franchise operation over the last 60 years. To be a part of this successful team as we lead the brand into the 21st century is a tremendous opportunity.”

Valletta began his career as the general manager of several franchised Howard Johnson hotels in the New England area, including 10 years at the brand«s flagship property located at the former Howard Johnson corporate headquarters in Braintree, Mass.

He attended Bryant College in Smithfield, R. I., and later Northeastern University in Boston, and is currently pursuing his masters degree in education at Cambridge College in Cambridge, Mass. He received the prestigious certified hotel administrator designation through the American Hotel & Lodging Associations Educational Institute in 1989.

The first Travelodge hotel was introduced in 1939 in response to travelers« need for homelike accommodations. Today, Travelodge Hotels is a growing franchise system with more than 570 upper-economy Travelodge® and budget Thriftlodge® properties and more than 47,000 guest rooms throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico.

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