about us
meet the
team
2 2 Y E A R S O N
Founders Gary & Vivien host awards ceremony 15 years ago
DEDICATED
to our industry
Our lead team have worked on annual Scottish hotel awards since we first founded a high profile national awards event in
2003... 22 years continuity of experience, concern and support for the industry we genuinely care for. In 2025 we're at work on the expanded
Scottish Hotels Support Program
including
National
Hotels of the Year® Scotland - working with ScotHot & the Scottish Tourism Alliance - plus The
Scottish Hotel People Awards™ and, from spring,
➦BestHotels.scot
together with our popular
social media pages and busy
industry help groups.
T H I S Y E A R ' S ▼ T E A M B E L O W
When we founded the awards the vision was to have travel writers and industry experts and peers independently and thoroughly get to know individual hotels. It is the hotel
people
who matter most: yes, of course, investment is critical, but it is the
skill and qualities of key individuals
that are the heartbeat of every hotel. We place great store in understanding and observing talent, dedication, reliability, charm, performance, promise and constancy in every department and at every level of seniority or ownership.
We shape the full awards results with thought, care and integrity, making sure the facts are bang up-to-date, the recognition deserved and category appropriate.
P R E M I E R 2 0 2 5 S P O N S O R
SOME OF THIS YEAR'S FACES
Hotels of the Year® Scotland
Team 2025
President
William Gorol
LinkedIn
| MD,
triSaaS
|
Entrepreneur
| ex-Chair,
Social Bite
Chairman
Gary McLean Quin
MD & Founder |
LinkedIn
Deputy Chairman
Vivien Devlin
Senior Feature Writer |
Smart Leisure Guide
Patron
Lady Claire Macdonald OBE
Bestselling food author | former leading Hotelier
J u d g e s
Marc Crothall MBE
Senior Judge & Advisor |
CEO, Scottish Tourism Forum
Toby Wand
Senior Judge & Advisor | MD
ScotHot
&
365 Events
Malcolm Duck
Senior &
Golf Hotels Judge | ex-Chair industry bodies | ex-Hotelier
Ken Scott
Senior Design & Founding Judge
Lea Harris
Lead Judge, Food & Chefs |
Writer |
Bite |
Great British Bake Off
Peter Ferguson
Senior Events Judge | Principal,
Beautiful Events
David Welch
Senior Management Judge | former leading General Manager
Phil MacHugh
Senior Judge | Journalist & TV Presenter
Ian McAndrew
Senior Food & Chef Judge | former
Michelin-star Chef Patron
Katie & Laurence Mackay
Senior Judges | former AA Red Star award-winning hoteliers
Sharon Green-Wilson
Senior Judge |
Councillor | Editor,
Bite Magazine
R e s e a r c h J u d g e s
Jan Leatham
Judge Researcher | Reviewer
Denny Periera
Judge |
Education Awards Nominee
| Industry expert
Katie White
Judge Researcher | Designer |
MD, White Creative
Jon Prete
Judge Researcher | Hospitality Industry IT |
International Marketing expert
Susie Farley
Judge Researcher | ex-GM
Iain Fraser
Ops Director & Support | Family Hotels Senior Judge | ex-GM
Scot Cameron
Judge Researcher |
Hospitality Tech expert
Jody Marshall
Judge Researcher | ex-Scottish Hotel Manager of the Year
Deborah Welsh
Judge Researcher |
Print Media PR expert |
AM+A
P e e r J u d g e s
Are not listed, to maintain our vital ability to carry out mystery visits, but include top industry experts, CEOs, hotel general managers, recognised chefs and leaders
A d m i n & S u p p o r t
Elisabeth Laird
Member & Team Support
~~~
➦Judging page
The 2025 Team arrive onstage for the start of the 2025 Hotels of the Year Scotland Awards Night
