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Big Dreams
by Gary A. Cross |
Paperback - 192 pages
ISBN: 978-1-934449-50-9 |
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Big Dreams come in small rooms...
“At least this room has a nice view; maybe a walk down the beach will clear my head before the meeting. Maybe they’ll have an iron downstairs,” are the thoughts running through the mind of many a traveler in hotel rooms. Dawn of a new day finds many travelers not at their destination, but in their journey. They rise early at a strange place oftentimes away from family, friends and comforts of home. The small room is a weigh station in their journey to fulfilling their dreams.
Big Dreams Come in small rooms is the story of one man’s journey in the hotel industry. If you have ever traveled in pursuit of a goal, you will relate, feel the loneliness and cheer for his triumphs. You’ll mourn as tragedy strikes and his faith is tested. but be inspired by his faith and determination. At the end you will agree, though big dreams may be born in the solitude of small
rooms, your Big Dreams can never be contained in small rooms. |
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Big Dreams Come In Small Rooms By GARY A. CROSS
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This story spans over a fifteen year period beginning in the early nineties and into the present times. It is an up close account of the personal experiences told by the author as he ventured into marketing, developing and eventually operating small hotels across the nation. What makes this story so interesting is that Gary Cross becomes perhaps the first African American in the industry to assume the role as a Hotel Franchise Developer. His research leads him right into the mix of the most successful trade organization in the hospitality industry and just happens to be owned
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and operated by Asian Indians who openly take him under their wings and show him the ropes to the business.
The story begins with the main character assuming a new assignment with a hotel marketing company in
Atlanta, Georgia.
New to the business he must first prove himself worthy of becoming a regional manager by setting appointments for the more experience staff and then after earning his stripes would he be entitled to go out into the field and represent the company. At this stage he describes the relationships he established with owners and managers of hotels as he would call to speak with them on a daily basis. This ongoing contact enabled him to make many relationships so when he did become released to sell in the field he would have a good base to begin. But Gary was more ambitious than most! Not only did he set out to conquer the task of setting leads for his colleagues, he filled their schedules so much that he was allowed months ahead of time to do what he really wanted to do and that was to sell hotel franchises to existing hotel owners.
Not only was he successful at this task, he began to opened new markets for the company he worked with at the time whose name is Hospitality International. Within the first two years with the company Gary was traveling back and forward to Jamaica where he established a total of five new hotel partners in that region. Now while there he was inspired by a prominent Jamaican hotelier named Dennis Morgan. He encouraged Gary to go back to the United States and inform African Americans about the opportunities that exist within the industry, and particularly as a hotel owner ! This lead Gary to establish what became a nationally recognized trade association and marketing firm where he was suddenly rubbing elbows with the movers and shakers of the industry. Mr. Michael Leven, was the chief executive officer of U.S. Franchise Systems Inc, (Microtel Hotels) and the first high ranking executive to embrace the initiative Gary began. Soon after every major hotel company in the nation was calling on him to share the research and concepts he had identified. He began speaking all over the nation at colleges and professional functions. As in most cases life has a way of creeping into reality, so when he found himself suddenly faced with his wife dying from pancreatic cancer he chose to surrender the limelight and comfort her during her final days. Now when he returns to the business he sees the message has been well received but now know one is calling on him. Again, he is faced with an opportunity to elevate the industry to an even higher plain. You see it has always been his
faith that takes him from one dimension to the next and this time is no different. The story climaxes with Gary joining a new hotel development and operating company and ultimately operating one of the best performing properties
in America!
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