When it comes to rapid portfolio growth, the stars seem to be “aligning” for at least one third-party management firm. Aligned Hospitality Management — a family-owned company founded in 2021 — recently added its 26th property, the Holiday Inn Express & Suites Globe in Globe, Arizona, and shows no signs of slowing down.
Family is at the heart of the Tucson, Arizona-based company, which is led by founder/CEO Bryan Tubaugh and president Helinda Lizarraga, who also happens to be Bryan’s mother. Tubaugh confirmed that the company is well ahead of schedule in terms of expansion.
“The growth has been just incredible. … I wish I could say I had this huge strategy to grow to 25 or 30 hotels in three years, but that was really our 10-year plan and we achieved it within three years,” he said.
To a mix of full-service and limited-service properties previously located exclusively in Colorado and Arizona, the company recently added M Solvang Gardens, a boutique hotel that represents its first property in California.
Tubaugh emphasized that the company’s accelerated growth was largely due to “word of mouth” rather than actively pursuing opportunities. He also noted that the company’s first two properties in Tucson – The Tuxon and Doubletree Suites by Hilton Hotel Tucson Airport – were managed for “very influential owners,” which ultimately led to more opportunities.
“Obviously they liked what we were doing and everything we brought to market was largely based on word of mouth through brands, brokers or banks,” he said.
For his part, Tubaugh noted that he “fell into the restaurant business quite naturally” due to his parents’ influence and their restaurant background. Tubaugh started in housekeeping at a young age and eventually worked his way up to front desk. He added, “My mom and dad were both in operations.”
His experience includes sales positions at branded companies such as Starwood Hotels, Loews Hotels and Hilton, as well as working for a smaller management company with his mother prior to the COVID outbreak.
Tubaugh acknowledged that the pandemic represented something of a “reset,” and so the idea of Aligned Hospitality Management became a reality.
“You sit at home and think, ‘Wait a minute, I can do that.’ So my mom and I talked and she said, ‘If you can pull this off, I’ll definitely do it,’ and that’s how Aligned started in 2021,” he said.
Tubaugh stressed that the company’s core values are “faith, family and love” and thanked his wife for naming the company. He explained, “Everything has to fit together. We have to align with our owners’ vision, we have to be able to execute on it, and the partnership has to be in harmony. So it’s just about everything we’re about.”
Such alignment is especially important because managing hotels is more challenging than ever as operating costs continue to rise and margins shrink. Tubaugh says one management requirement is that everyone must have experience in a line-level position, so he cites the team’s hands-on approach and ability to “keep the big picture” at the property level as key to operations.
“It’s really about training and getting our hands dirty, being on the ground, working with our teams and evaluating. There’s so much data now that it can be almost paralyzing. So it’s really about learning what numbers to look at and just making sure we’re doing everything we can while continuing to provide that guest service,” he said.
Tubaugh added: “Our team is incredible, we do everything by hand and it works.”
He noted that the portfolio is “quite diverse” in terms of asset types. Tubaugh called the 204-room DoubleTree “the company’s trophy in terms of revenue” and hinted that the portfolio will continue to evolve.
“We place a lot of emphasis on boutique properties because we can be creative with our owners, and I really enjoy bringing those visions to life. So I think our growth will be more focused on mid- and upper-middle-class properties and boutique properties,” he said.
Tubaugh also hinted that the firm could be involved in larger deals in the future, noting, “We are currently serving some portfolio owners.”
He concluded by saying: “We will definitely try to reduce the individual projects and focus on more portfolios. In the next five years, we will eventually look to acquire properties ourselves,” he said.
