Winston J Zahra appointed CEO of hospitality firm backed by Manchester United greats

Local entrepreneur Winston J Zahra has reportedly been appointed the new chief executive of GG Hospitality, a hotel and restaurant firm backed by Manchester United footballers Ryan Giggs and Gary Neville, which is preparing to launch its Hotel Football brand internationally.

According to reports in UK business magazine The Caterer, Giggs and Neville are also planning the St Michael’s development in Manchester - a complex including a 200-bedroom hotel, 170 apartments, 147,000 sq. ft. of office space, and 32,000 sq. ft. of leisure space.

“I have known Gary and Ryan for around ten years – they actually invested in my business a couple of years ago, and Gary sat on our board,” Zahra told The Caterer.

“I sold and stepped out of that business towards the end of last year and had a conversation with Gary who asked if I would be interested in joining them here and it didn’t take very long to take that decision because I like the way they think and work, and their ambitions,” he said.

In turn, Neville and Giggs said that they are looking forward to GG Hospitality progressing under Zahra’s lead. 

“Winston is an experienced CEO and an outstanding leader. He brings a track record of reshaping businesses while simultaneously driving outstanding financial performance,” they highlighted.

Zahra, who has more than 30 years of experience in the hospitality industry and formerly co-owned Malta-based Island Hotels Group Holdings, said that he planned to see a roll-out of Hotel Football first in the UK, and then internationally, highlighting that he would be driving the launch with the rest of his team.

“The fundamentals are great and I think the market for this this type of brand is definitely there,” he said, “As with any hotel, it is case of now finding the right locations and backing that up with solid operations to make sure we deliver what we are supposed to deliver to the market.”