Sarah Dandashy is a TV travel expert, best-selling author, and TEDx keynote speaker. With 18+ years in hospitality and roots as a luxury hotel concierge, she built Ask A Concierge into a globally recognized brand with 300k+ followers. She partners with top travel brands and tourism boards, appears on ABC/CBS/FOX, and delivers sharp, real-world insights on travel trends and guest experience. She also co-hosts Skift’s Good Morning Hospitality and fronts the Skift Daily Briefing.

Naomi joined Mews in 2023 and oversees recruitment, onboarding, benefits, development and growth, and workplace management. She's passionate about people, and has a large role in steering Mews’ culture, making her a great judge of character and meaningful change.

Manisha’s extensive experience in leading and scaling international teams (including Uber) brings invaluable strategic insight to our panel. Her commitment to diversity and high-performance makes her a great judge of innovation.

Jan van Hövell is the founder of KLABU. Growing up in countries with large refugee communities, including Bangladesh and former Yugoslavia, shaped his commitment to supporting refugees. After an internship with UNHCR in Ghana and a career as a lawyer in Amsterdam, he left law in 2016 to build KLABU. Today, he leads a growing team, fully dedicated to creating long term impact for refugees through sport.

Julie is EY Global Vice Chair for Alliances and Ecosystems and a member of the Global Executive. She leads EY’s global strategic alliances, driving client value through collaboration and innovation. With 30 years in professional services, she expands ecosystems and technology partnerships. Formerly EMEIA Area Managing Partner, she chairs AmCham EU, serves on international boards, and is a US CPA and dual German American citizen.

As Head of Innovation & Creativity at Disney, Duncan led teams across Disney Parks, Lucasfilm, Marvel, Pixar, Imagineering and Animation, developing magical new storylines and amazing experiences worldwide. He now delivers keynotes and masterclasses that spark disruptive thinking and unlikely connections. A multiple TEDx speaker, he contributes to Fast Company, Harvard Business Review and Forbes, teaches at Yale and Harvard, and holds prestigious national and academic honours.

Gilad Berenstein is an AI entrepreneur, board director, and venture investor based in Seattle, with three decades at the intersection of technology, travel, hospitality, and lifestyle. He leads Brook Bay Capital and serves as Advisor and on Boards including Virtuoso, Faye, Mindtrip, and ResortPass. Founder of Utrip, the first AI trip-planning company, Gilad is a leading thinker on AI, personalization, and the “Great Commoditization,” advising Founders and CEOs from across our industry.

Eljesa Saciri is the General Manager of The Mandrake Hotel and its first female leader, redefining modern luxury hospitality. With nearly a decade of experience, she drives excellence across hotel, wellness, and members’ clubs. A Caterer Acorn 30 Under 30 winner, Eljesa is a passionate advocate for equality, mentorship, and wellbeing, championing social impact, education, and inclusive leadership across the industry.

Charlie founded The Social Hub in 2003. His love of community and belief that customers deserve better started it all and remains the guiding force behind the company’s winning hybrid hospitality concept. With his instinctive drive, The Social Hub has grown to hold 23 assets across Europe and has raised more than €2 billion from investors, making Charlie a leading voice on the future of social impact driven hospitality.

Danica Smith is a Top 100 hospitality industry thought leader, guest experience advisor and co-host of Hospitality Daily. With 15 years in hospitality and hotel tech, she’s worked on new openings, guest experience strategy and tech rollouts across the industry. She’s obsessed with the moments that shape guest experience and the commercial impact behind them. She also serves on the board of Women in Travel Thrive EMEA, supporting women’s visibility, leadership growth and real community-building across travel and hospitality.

Richard is an entrepreneur, ex-hotelier and hospitality enthusiast. He founded Mews to bring modern, seamless hospitality to hoteliers and guests alike, pushing hoteliers to think differently, from operations and payments to optimizing every square inch of their properties.

After years in the trenches of hospitality, Matt co-founded Mews in 2012. Since then, he's been our fearless CEO, leading the company and the industry forward.

Halima Aziz leads Criterion Hospitality, transforming obsolete buildings into high-value, sustainable hospitality assets. Halima spearheads Zedwell, Criterion’s pioneering in-house hotel brand, scaling it across the UK and launching the world’s largest capsule hotel. Halima’s remit spans 28 current and pipeline hotel assets with 9,000+ rooms. A recognised industry voice, Halima serves on the Mews Hospitality Industry Advisory Board and was named in Boutique Hotelier’s 2025 Power List.