OYO Names Former Starbucks Executive To Board

OYO Hotels & Homes has named Troy Alstead, who previously served as Starbucks’ COO, as an independent member of its board of directors. The executive will have a “supervisory role” in its service and will offer advice to the founder and management on important business decisions, according to a post on OYO’s blog.

OYO Hotels & Homes Founder and Group CEO Ritesh Agarwal said in the post, “We are delighted to welcome Troy to OYO’s board of directors. Troy brings tremendous operating and governance experience that will help us continue delivering on our mission to help millions of middle-income people around the world gain access to quality accommodations at different price points.”

Beyond having served as COO of Starbucks Corporation, Alstead is the founder, president and CEO of a new destination for playing, gathering and dining called Ocean5, as well as the farm-to-table restaurant Table 47. The company noted in the post that Alstead’s “ability to determine what the new-age customer needs and curate a product that successfully helps satisfy the said need, at scale, will be valuable as we go about our journey of helping people live the good life.” Alstead is also on the board of Harley-Davidson Inc., Levi Strauss & Co. and Topgolf Group Ltd.

“OYO, with its unique asset-light business model and strong data capabilities, is creating something entirely new for more than three billion middle-income travelers and city dwellers who need accommodations that meet their standards and also their budgets,” Alstead said in the post. “I look forward to working with Ritesh, the management team and my fellow board members as OYO strives to become the world’s most beloved and preferred hotel brand.”

In separate news, OYO, which grew into one of the biggest chains by providing hotel owners with guaranteed revenues for promoting its brand, plans to phase out that incentive in an effort to find profitability.