Sam Bakhshandehpour

Sam Bakhshandehpour is a seasoned professional with a strong background in leading various restaurant, hospitality, lifestyle, and media firms as President, CEO, and Board Member.

With a keen eye for uncovering high-value brands, Sam excels in leveraging intellectual property while ensuring brand integrity and generating value for investors, employees, and companies.

Throughout his successful career, Sam has demonstrated his strategic vision, financial acumen, and business instincts in building and expanding a diverse investment portfolio in industries such as hotels, restaurants, entertainment, and specialty retail.

He has collaborated with renowned designers and architects like Frank Gehry, David Rockwell, and Rafael Viñoly Beceiro, among others, showcasing his ability to work with top talents in the field.

Sam's key strengths lie in shaping growth strategies, advising on domestic and global expansion, partaking in Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) activities, navigating capital markets, overseeing sponsorships and live events, as well as managing operations and leading global teams.

His expertise spans corporate governance, strategic partnerships, board governance, M&A, restructuring, investment capital, global expansion, and more, reflecting his comprehensive skill set in diverse areas of business.

Sam's professional journey includes roles such as CEO & Board Member at José Andrés Group, Co-Founder & Principal at Cultivate Hospitality Group, CEO at sbe Lifestyle Hospitality, and Managing Director at J.P. Morgan, showcasing his extensive leadership experience in various organizations.

Through his educational background at Georgetown University McDonough School of Business and University of Oxford, Sam has built a solid foundation in finance, international business, and strategic planning.

As a former member of boards and advisory committees in companies like BILT Technologies, Fiserv, and Shift4, Sam has contributed his expertise in corporate governance, compensation, and audit committee functions, further highlighting his commitment to organizational success.