He provides services to corporate, institutional, and individual clients as well as public agencies on all facets of hospitality real estate including: litigation support and expert testimony, site evaluation, highest and best use analysis, appraisals for mortgage, acquisition, and portfolio management, workout strategies, operational analysis, property tax assessment appeal evaluations, economic impact studies, deal structuring, and fairness opinions.

Mr. Lesser is a leading authority on hotel feasibility and valuation, and is highly sought after to speak at lodging and real estate events, as well as lectures at prestigious institutions of higher education, including Cornell University, Columbia University and New York University.

He is widely published and quoted, and serves as a quarterly columnist for HotelNewsNow.com and GlobeSt.com. Most recently, Mr. Lesser created and served as the Senior Managing Director – Industry Leader of the Hospitality & Gaming Valuation Advisory Services Group at CB Richard Ellis Hotels (CBRE). Prior to joining CBRE, Mr. Lesser founded and led the Hospitality & Gaming Group at Cushman & Wakefield and was a founding member of the team at HVS International.

Mr. Lesser has also held operational and administrative positions with Hilton Hotels Corporation and Eurotels – Switzerland. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Hotel Administration from Cornell University, and also attended the Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne, Switzerland and Baruch College – City University of New York. Mr. Lesser holds the following professional designations: MAI (Member of the Appraisal Institute), FRICS (Fellow of The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors), CRE (Counselor of Real Estate), and CHA (Certified Hotel Administrator).

Mr. Lesser is a member of and has served on numerous committees for the Counselors of Real Estate, the Appraisal Institute, the American Hotel & Lodging Association, and the Board of Directors of the New York City Chapter of the Cornell Hotel Society. He is a former Advisory Board member and member of the Fundraising Subcommittee for the New York University Preston Robert Tisch Center for Hospitality, Tourism and Sports Management.

Mr. Lesser is a founding member of the Lodging Industry Investment Council (LIIC), the hotel industry “think tank.” Furthermore, Mr. Lesser served as an Honorary Committee Member of the annual UJA – Federation New York Hotel & Hospitality Division Dinner, and is a member of the AIPAC Real Estate Division.

At Axar, Mr. Walker served as the Director on the Real Estate Investment Team. Prior to Axar, Mr. Walker served as a Vice President at Mount Kellett Capital Management and an Analyst at Brookfield Asset Management. Mr. Walker received his Bachelor of Science degree from the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration.

Mr. Cooley is responsible for overseeing all executive aspects of the firm, including setting the strategic direction and oversight of the company’s investment, development, and management divisions.

Prior to founding AWH Partners, Mr. Cooley served as Vice President at The Related Companies from 2002-2009, where he managed numerous investments through all stages of the acquisition and development process, totaling hundreds of millions of dollars. With 18 years of industry experience, Mr. Cooley remains actively involved in AWH’s pursuit of ground up, value-add and distressed hospitality investment opportunities.

Mr. Cooley received his BA in Political Science from Colgate University and currently serves as an executive member of the University’s Alumni Council.

Joe Delli Santi Senior Vice President, Acquisitions & Development at MCR a premier hotel management company and the fifth-largest hotel owner-operator in the United States. Headquartered in New York City and Dallas, MCR has invested in and developed 119 hotel properties operated under 14 brands, in 29 states and 76 cities.