CHICAGO (April 5, 2023) —Kimpton Gray Hotel is proud to announce the appointment of Lisa Ares to General Manager. In this role, Ares will oversee the downtown Chicago hotel guest experience and hotel team while engaging with the surrounding community. Ares arrives at Kimpton Gray Hotel with over 22 years of experience working in hotels.
“I’m thrilled to join the exceptional team at Kimpton Gray hotel,” says Ares. “My main goal in this new role is to bring the Kimpton brand to life by being yourself, leading yourself, and making it count.”
Ares first found her calling while living at a world famous ski resort in Whistler British Columbia as a room attendant to fulfill her dream of competitive snowboarding. Rather than pursuing a career on the slopes she was inspired to embrace her newfound career in hospitality. Over the course of her career, Ares has held a variety of leadership roles in the hotel industry spanning guest services, operations, housekeeping, and more.
In 1999, Ares began her career at Fairmont Hotels & Resorts as Night Manager before joining Starwood Hotels & Resorts in 2021 where she served as Assistant Front Office Manager at Sheraton Vancouver Wall Centre and in 2004 served as Director of Guest Services at Westin Bayshore. In 2007, Ares rejoined the Fairmont team to serve as Front Office Manager at Fairmont Hotel Vancouver before transitioning into the role of Director of Rooms at Fairmont Banff Springs in 2009. During her almost nine year tenure at Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, Ares also served as Director of Rooms at Fairmont Royal York and Director of Operations at Fairmont Hotel Vancouver and Fairmont San Jose. In 2016, Ares served as Resident Manager at JW Marriott Austin before joining the IHG team in 2017 as Executive Assistant Manager at InterContinental Boston.
In 2019, Ares assumed her first role as General Manager at Crowne Plaza Milwaukee West. The following year she served as General Manager at Sonesta Milwaukee West and in 2021 at Sonesta Denver Downtown. Most recently, Ares was part of the team at InterContinental Chicago Magnificent Mile serving as Hotel Manager in 2022.
During the course of Ares’s multifaceted career she has led multiple property teams through numerous notable events, including the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver, the 2014 Presidential visit in San Jose, 2016 NFL Super Bowl, the 2016 Formula Race Series in Austin, the 2021 Ryder Cup in Milwaukee, and more. However, her favorite part of her career has been taking part in IHG’s RISE program aimed at advancing women’s careers in hospitality which ultimately led her to join Kimpton Gray Hotel as General Manager.
“The RISE programme with its mentorship piece was critical in my development,” says Ares. “Part of this growth was understanding the different brands within IHG and finding aspiration to join Kimpton, whose mission is to focus on what it means to be human and an individual. When people can be themselves at work, they shine”.
Looking ahead, Ares is most excited about leading the Kimpton Gray Hotel team and developing others to reach their greatest potential. As an avid foodie, she is also looking forward to working closely with the property’s food and beverage team to share the newly launched food menu at Vol. 39 with guests and launch a series of highly anticipated changes at the property’s rooftop restaurant Boleo, just in time for summer.
