Craig Seaman is the founder and CEO of Index Hotels, driven by his deep passion for hospitality and its positive influence on guests, employees, and communities. With more than 35 years in the industry, Craig possesses extensive expertise. He is qualified in Hotel Management, including credentials from Cornell University, USA.

Craig’s career highlights include key management roles at Southern Sun and Sun International, overseeing major properties. As the first General Manager at Spier in Stellenbosch, he played a pivotal role in developing a world-renowned wine estate, hotel, and resort. Later, as Managing Director of HS&V Hospitality, he successfully led the acquisition and transformation of boutique hotels in South Africa and Germany.

Ten years ago, Craig expanded his scope to West Africa, consulting on strategies for Fiesta Hotels and Residences and later leading the development of Fiesta Residences Boutique Hotel and Serviced Apartments.

In 2019, he founded Index Hotels to manage and develop independent hotels, assembling a team to provide comprehensive management and marketing solutions for the African hospitality sector. Index Hotels also offers revenue optimisation, technical services, and brand development for various hospitality ventures.

In addition to his industry roles, Craig has served as Vice President of the Cape Chamber of Commerce and held positions such as Chairman of the International Trade and Tourism Portfolio. He has also contributed to organisations promoting Stellenbosch, including Stellenbosch 360 and Visit Stellenbosch.

Nicorine Bekker plays a crucial role in maximizing hotel revenues and implementing business optimization strategies. A graduate of the University of Stellenbosch in 2004, she has further enhanced her expertise with numerous qualifications in Business Management and as a Certified Revenue Management Executive.

Her career began at Protea Hotels, followed by a position at The Devon Valley Hotel as Marketing & Pricing Coordinator. With the formation of Louis Group Hotels Spas & Vineyards, Nicorine advanced to Group Revenue Manager, overseeing Revenue, Sales, and Marketing Departments. In 2012, she joined Preferred Hotels and Resorts as a Revenue Account Manager for India, the Middle East, and Africa, delivering revenue and online distribution support to multiple hotels and gaining valuable international experience.

Joining Index Hotels in 2019 as Executive Head of Business Optimisation, Nicorine offers hotels and resorts a comprehensive approach to leveraging state-of-the-art technology, optimal distribution, and strategic sales and marketing efforts. She has been instrumental in developing holistic strategies and implementing the most effective distribution networks to enhance revenue and profit streams.

Lynné Gillespie oversees Media & Public Relations, Communications, Marketing, E-Marketing, and Social Media initiatives for Index Hotels. With a strong passion for the Food & Beverage sector of hotel operations, Lynné began her education at Le Cordon Bleu in London, followed by obtaining her Hotel Management qualification Cum Laude from the Cape Town Hotel School in Granger Bay.

Her career began at the Cape Sun Hotel, where she played a key role in rebranding it as an Inter-Continental Hotel, holding various management positions in Food & Beverage. She then served as Assistant Food & Beverage Manager at the Table Bay Hotel in the V&A Waterfront in the late 1990s.

In the early 2000s, Lynné joined the Rezidor Group with the Radisson Blu Hotel in Waterfront, where she held several key executive management positions over nearly a decade. She contributed significantly to Public Relations and Marketing, playing an integral role in brand awareness and brand development for the Rezidor Group in Southern Africa.

After her tenure as Executive Assistant at HS&V Hospitality, where she successfully managed communications and public relations, Lynné joined Index Hotels. Her current focus is on communication, design, and brand development. She collaborates closely with hotels to analyse marketing strategies and collateral, co-creating detailed marketing plans tailored to specific market segments.

Elfrida Fivaz is responsible for developing, implementing, and coordinating the sales strategy for the entire Index Hotels portfolio. She holds an International Diploma in Hotel Management (Cum Laude) from the Institute for Hospitality Training. Elfrida began her career at The Devon Valley Hotel in 2008 as a hotel management trainee and quickly advanced to the reservations and revenue management team. She then took on a key role at HS&V Hospitality Management, coordinating communication between local and international sales teams and the hotels.

As a member of Skål International, Elfrida is an enthusiastic networker with a knack for finding innovative ways to drive business for hotels. Since joining Index Hotels in 2019, she has provided dedicated sales support by ensuring regular sales calls to promote each property. Increasing hotel’s market exposure, and developing potential markets through strong relationship-building and her extensive experience and well-established contacts in the leisure, corporate, and MICE markets. Elfrida also assists hotels in navigating the complex RFP bidding process, helping them secure more contracts from corporate travel buyers, consortia, and TMCs.

With over 35 years of seasoned accounting and entrepreneurial experience, Faried Jones has made significant strides in the hospitality industry. His journey began in 1985 when he joined the Protea Hotel Group after completing his articles with a Chartered Accounting firm. The professional ethos of Protea Hotel Group greatly influenced Faried, establishing a strong foundation for his business engagements over the decades.

Faried’s unique blend of business acumen and financial expertise has equipped him to develop and implement strategically oriented financial and management accounting systems, with a specialisation in the hospitality sector. He is particularly focused on automating bookkeeping and accounting processes. Throughout his career, Faried has predominantly consulted, troubleshot, and set up accounting systems while training staff in the hospitality industry.

His work has extended to prestigious organizations such as Protea Hotels, Southern Sun, and Belmond (formerly Orient Express Hotels), as well as several independents like Grande Roche Hotel, The Peninsula All-Suite Hotel, and Century City Conference Centre.

With over 20 years of experience in the hotel industry, Johan de Villiers brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to his role as Operations Manager for West Africa at Index Hotels. Johan studied hotel operations management at the Belvoirpark Hotelfachschule and began his career in Botswana focusing on the conference sector before moving into Food and Beverage management with the Legacy Hotel Group.

Johan advanced to executive management positions, overseeing large-scale conference and hotel operations at Sun City. His aspiration to relocate to Cape Town was fulfilled when he became General Manager and later Managing Director of the Pavilion Leisure Group. In 2015, Johan established his own consulting company, focusing on development and refurbishment projects for several hotel groups as a Development Manager. His achievements led to him managing Sun International’s highly successful Grand West Casino, Hotel, and Entertainment Centre.

An opportunity in West Africa beckoned, and Johan joined Index Hotels as General Manager for their contracted units in Ghana, where he continues to leverage his extensive operational expertise to drive success in the region.