Damon Lawrence and Marcus Carey are two Howard University grads who are venturing into the hospitality business.
The pair launched Homage Hospitality in 2016; the hotel company focuses on preserving African-American culture, according to Rolling Out.
The two serve key roles in the business; Lawrence focuses on the creative aspect such as what music is played, the scent, and the overall aesthetic of the hotel rooms. Carey focuses on the business aspect.
Their roles match their backgrounds. Lawrence isn’t new to the scene, as he worked as a front-desk agent for the Thompson Hotel Group’s Donovan House Hotel in D.C. He also worked his way up to management while working for the Ritz Carlton and Intercontinental Hotel Group & Dusit International. Carey, meanwhile, brings private equity and venture capital investing to the table.
Their hotels are located in cities where they feel that African-American culture is missing or starting to fade away.
“We looked at cities across the nation many of which are losing their culture because gentrification is ravaging some of our premier cities and cities that we’ve known to be ours. When I say ours, I mean African American and we’re losing that,” Lawrence said.
I’ll be booking my stay soon!