Active for more than 35 years, Dallas- and Denver-based practice Bray Whaler is one of the largest hospitality procurement firms in the U.S. Under the leadership of executive vice president and founding principal Ronnie Bray and owner, president, and CEO Elisa Whaler, the firm has procured more than 3,800 projects valued at more than $5.3 billion. Outside of the business, Bray and Whaler inspire the next generation of hospitality leaders as educators and mentors to students at Denver University’s Fritz Knoebel School of Hospitality Management.

Design maestro Ken Fulk tallies 25 years of crafting environments that elevate the lives of those inhabiting them. In addition to helming his eponymous firm, which comprises 80 team members across offices in San Francisco and New York, Fulk serves as co-proprietor and creative director of a range of properties, including hotels in New Orleans and the Berkshires. In 2018, he founded Saint Joseph’s Arts Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting local artists at revitalized historic landmarks in San Francisco and Provincetown.

A passion for wellness, sustainability, and purposeful travel led Neil Jacobs to Six Senses in 2012. Serving as CEO of the dynamic hotel and spa brand, Jacobs has steered the company to set new standards for green initiatives and responsible design with a range of projects in locales including India, Israel, and the Seychelles, and Rome. He continues to affirm that constant innovation and meaningful amenities tailored to health and wellbeing not only builds traveler demand, but also empowers guests and staff to maximize their full potential.

Salamander Hotels & Resorts is ranked as one the largest minority-owned and woman-owned companies in the Washington, DC area, thanks to CEO and founder Sheila Johnson. Since opening the Salamander Resort & Spa in Middleburg, Virginia, the former Black Entertainment Television (BET) cofounder has grown the collection to include upscale retreats such as Innisbrook in Tampa Bay, Florida; Hotel Bennett in Charleston, South Carolina; and Half Moon in Montego Bay, Jamaica. Johnson has also lent her expertise to industry organizations from the executive committee of the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) to the Forbes Travel Guide Strategy Committee. She was also appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce to serve on the U.S. Travel and Tourism Advisory Board.

Barbara Parker and Miriam Torres may have launched their global design and interior architecture firm Parker-Torres Design in 2004, but the two first collaborated in 1997 on the design of the Bentley in London. The pair have drawn upon their mutual strengths ever since, delivering specialized solutions throughout a diverse portfolio. Standout projects like the Phoenician Resort & Spa, the Ritz-Carlton, Naples Beach Resort, the Whitley Hotel Buckhead, and the Marriott Marquis San Francisco reflect a distinctive design approach that reaches the highest tier of creativity.