The prestigious Forbes magazine has placed Gabriel Escarrer, Executive Vice President, CEO of Meliá Hotels International and President of Exceltur, in ninth position among the best executives in Spain in 2021 in the ranking of the 50 most outstanding that it publishes annually.

“The tourism sector has been one of the great protagonists of 2021. The rain of restrictions caused by the variations of the Covid have put the strength of companies to the test. Meliá closed the year with a spectacular increase in revenue. The hotel company earned almost 71% more than the previous year, and managed to lift a very complicated year for its business model. The group’s digitization strategy was key and the returns generated by the luxury segment made the company one of the best examples of resilience”, the publication considered.

The only representative of the tourism sector (which contributes 12.4% of Spanish GDP) in the Top 10 of the ranking, it stands out that Escarrer embodies, at the head of the country’s leading hotel company, the resilience of a sector directly affected by the fear of the pandemic and restrictions on mobility, which, however, has managed to resurface in 2021. The company experienced a partial recovery from the third quarter of the year, which it hopes to consolidate during 2022.

Despite the Omicron variant that had an impact as of November, Meliá managed to close the year with a strong recovery in revenue, which, together with the Company’s strategic orientation towards digitization, sustainability and the quality of its product (with a clear commitment to the superior and luxury segment) would have been other aspects valued by the Ranking Jury.

For Gabriel Escarrer, “appearing in the Top 10 of the Best CEOs in Spain 2021 is an enormous recognition, especially in this complex year of transition and almost rebirth that we have experienced. A satisfaction that undoubtedly stimulates us to continue striving so that the tourism sector leads the recovery in Spain, and once again contributes its full potential to the country’s economy and employment”.

The list of the 50 Best CEOs is made by a Jury made up of 13 national and international entities, which after a selection of large companies, rate the management of each of them.

The Executive Vice President and CEO of Meliá Hotels International, Gabriel Escarrer, at the opening of the latest Exceltur Forum. Photo: Exceltur Press.