Successful hospitality alumni

Shining examples

Managing restaurants, hotels, properties — these alumni are enjoying success in their hospitality careers

David Crabtree, a 1989 graduate, visits a Landshark Bar & Grill, one of the restaurant brands he is expanding as CEO of IMCMV Holdings.

David Crabtree

Whether it’s the people or restaurants he’s been associated with — Debbie Reynolds, Jimmy Buffett, Planet Hollywood — David Crabtree has had a star-studded executive career in the hospitality field.

The 1989 graduate isn’t slowing down, either. Starting in 2016 he became CEO of IMCMV Holdings, an Orlando company that’s developing Margaritaville, Landshark and other tropical-style casual restaurants in tourist areas of the U.S. In two years, Crabtree has expanded the Buffett-licensed business from 14 to 22 restaurants. More are on the board, including three in a Margaritaville hotel in 2020 in Times Square.

IMCMV Holdings is a subsidiary of International Meal Company of Brazil. Crabtree was sought out by IMC because of his management success — president/CEO of Planet Hollywood restaurants from 2010-2014; COO of sales and marketing with Westgate Resorts from 1998-2010; and manager of Debbie Reynolds Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas from 1993-1998, the latter while working on his MBA at University of Nevada-Las Vegas and after he left Ruby Tuesday’s management program.

Crabtree helped Westgate Resorts, owned by timeshare king David Siegel, grow from five to 28 resorts and from $16 million to $250 million annual earnings before taxes. The company had more than $1 billion in revenue and 12,000 employees before the 2008 financial crisis hit, when Crabtree had to lay off 6,000 workers in one week.

With his people-centered business philosophy, Crabtree is back doing what he loves — managing employees and visiting his restaurants to meet them. “I try to run it like a team or family. I love to see other people succeed and achieve whatever career goals they have. Someone gave me the opportunity and I seized it, and I’m very grateful for that.”

Crabtree started at UW-Stout in the applied mathematics and computer science program after being recruited to play baseball by Coach Terry Petrie. He soon switched to hospitality. “I wasn’t sure what I would do with a math degree, and I always loved people. I have nothing but fond memories of Stout. It helped make me who I am today, and I built many close, lifelong friendships,” he said.

Cambria Hotel Chicago Loop

Treasure Island Center

Lisa Adams

Lisa Adams Lisa Adams didn’t plan to work in hospitality when she went to college. It came to her — via UW-Stout. By the time she graduated in 1991 with a business administration degree, she had become familiar with the industry through friends who were hospitality majors and was intrigued. After a Career Fair on campus, she landed a job with Red Roof Inn.

More than 25 years later, she’s still in the hotel industry and loving what she does. After joining Choice Hotels in 1999, she has moved up to regional vice president for franchise services for the Central/Midwest Region, based in Indianapolis. She oversees operational and financial matters with franchisees at 1,200 midscale hotels in seven states, managing 17 area directors. Some of the company’s 11 brands are Cambria, Comfort, Clarion, Quality, Woodspring, Mainstay, Sleep, Econo Lodge and Rodeway.

“Our biggest goal is to help these owners become more profitable. If they’re more successful, they’ll open more of our hotels,” said Adams, who travels often. “Two things I like most are the relationships with the owners, seeing how they’ve grown their portfolio of hotels, and relationships with area directors. I get to work with a lot of really interesting people.”

Adams also enjoys the strategic part of the job, helping owners prepare for the future. When she started in the industry, computers, online booking and hotel websites were new. Metal room keys have been replaced by card keys and, soon, phone apps. Robot concierges and Amazon’s Alexa in rooms aren’t far off. “This role is more strategic than ever. Working on what we are going to do three to five years down the road is really fun for me.”

The northern Wisconsin native hopes soon to visit her Quality Inn franchisee in Menomonie and stop by UW-Stout. “Stout really prepared me. There still are things I use to this day from my business classes,” Adams said.

Zach Vierling

For a former UW-Stout hockey team captain, managing an upscale property in St. Paul that includes the Minnesota Wild’s new practice facility is close to a dream job. “I couldn’t ask for a better facility to be at,” Zach Vierling said.

Vierling’s career has taken off like a slapshot since he Zach Vierling graduated in December 2014 with degrees in real estate property management and in business administration. He started as an assistant property manager for Ryan Companies and was named a 30 Under 30 exceptional young professional in June 2017 by the Institute for Real Estate Property Management. In July 2017 joined Hempel Companies as a property manager.

With Hempel, he manages the Treasure Island Center, a mixedused redevelopment of a former Macy’s department store in downtown St. Paul. The marquee tenant of the 540,000-squarefoot property is the Wild of the National Hockey League; the covered TRIA Rink on the top floor has 1,200 seats and is used by other hockey teams too. Other tenants include a Walgreens, Tim Horton’s, Treasure Island Resort and Casino offices and Stacked Deck Brewery. The Wild began using the rink last season, and renovation on the building is continuing.

“The development phase is always exciting. Every day is something different. There’s nothing mundane,” said Vierling, whose job includes all aspects of managing the property, including working with tenants.

The Coon Rapids, Minn., native began work on his CPM certification — certified property manager — while at UW-Stout and expects to have it soon with his required three years of professional experience. He said he wouldn’t be where he is today without UW-Stout and the education advice of his father, who also works in commercial real estate. “The majors are extremely beneficial to what I do. I was able to jump right into a manager’s role, which doesn’t happen too often.”

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