John Fareed
Global Chairman, Managing Partner, Los Angeles, USA
John Fareed is the Global Chairman of Horwath HTL, where he is responsible for leading the global brand and managing the firm's offices in the Americas.
Bio
John has over 30 years of experience in providing consulting services to a diverse clientele, including Fortune 500 companies, global brands, lenders, developers, REITs, management companies, investors, owners, attorneys, and insurers. His consulting expertise is concentrated in the areas of asset management and strategic market planning, with a particular focus on new openings, repositionings, and turnarounds. Furthermore, John provides expert witness and litigation support services within the hospitality, tourism, and leisure sector.
John's accomplishments have been widely recognized. The Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI) named him one of the "Top 25 Extraordinary Minds in Sales and Marketing." In 2024, the International Hospitality Institute (IHI) named him among the "100 Most Influential People in USA Hospitality and Travel." Additionally, John serves as Global Chair Emeritus of the International Society of Hospitality Consultants (ISHC) and as a member of the Board of Trustees for HSMAI's International Foundation.
John Fareed holds a Master of Science degree from the School of Hospitality Management and Tourism at the Dublin Institute of Technology (now known as Technological University Dublin) in Ireland. Furthermore, he holds a Hotel Real Estate Investments and Asset Management Certificate from Cornell University and professional designations from both the International Society of Hospitality Consultants and the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International.
Expert insights
Cutting edge analysis.
A unified vision for tourism readiness ahead of the World Cup
In 2026, the world will turn its eyes toward North America. For a month, the FIFA World Cup will become more than a global sporting competition – it will be a defining measure of how cities, nations, and industries craft human experience at scale.
The campus as destination
How universities can use hospitality discipline to strengthen enrollment, revenue, and long-term resilience A university campus is one of the most complex real estate products in most markets. It is a learning environment, an employer, a cultural institution, a civic landmark, a landlord, a transportation network, a public realm, and in many towns, the closest thing to a year-round destination resort. Yet most universities still manage the campus experience as a set of separate functions rather than as a single, intentional “arrival-to-departure” journey.
Beyond hotels – luxury rentals rewrite travel playbooks
Luxury travel is evolving, and the traditional divide between five-star hotels and private residences is quickly disappearing. In destinations such as Park City, Utah, travellers now expect the comfort and scale of a home combined with the seamless service of a luxury hotel. At the same time, hotels are embracing a more residential feel – prioritising space, privacy, and thoughtful design. In a new article for Branded Residential, Bryan Younge explores these themes.
Unlocking hidden value through creative asset management in hospitality
In today’s hospitality landscape, asset managers face a triple squeeze: rising construction costs, escalating labor expenses and flattening ADRs. At the same time, hotel guests demand more personalized, differentiated experiences. In this climate, underutilized spaces — breakfast rooms, lobbies, parking lots — aren’t just dead weight. They’re latent assets waiting to be activated.
The ecosystem edge: maximizing stadium naming rights
The practice of selling naming rights for professional sports stadiums has grown into one of the most visible and lucrative sectors of sponsorship marketing. What was once considered a novelty—putting a corporate name on a building—has become a multi-billion-dollar industry with far-reaching implications for teams, municipalities, investors, and brand partners alike. In the NFL alone, naming rights agreements collectively generate well over a billion dollars annually, and new deals continue to climb to unprecedented valuations. Yet the naming rights story is no longer simply about signage, media mentions, or having one’s brand on the skyline. Today, the real value is unlocked when the naming rights contract is designed as part of a fertile ecosystem—a symbiotic environment where the sponsor’s brand, the stadium, the fans, and the surrounding community are actively engaged. The name on the building becomes only one component of a broader, carefully orchestrated strategy.
Hoteliers adjust to US government slowdown
It’s no secret government policy changes have shifted the ways domestic organizations operate in 2025. For U.S. hotels, slowdowns of government-related business have impacted a variety of stakeholders in the space, and depending on the portfolio, some more than others.