Awaze bolsters leadership team with five senior strategic hires

New role, director of owner lifecycle, will focus on using data and AI to optimise end-to-end owner journey

Awaze, Europe’s largest provider of holiday rentals which includes brands Hoseasons and Cottages.com, has strengthened its leadership team with a series of senior strategic appointments.

It has created five new roles which will be "key" in delivering Awaze’s long-term growth strategy, enhancing the experience for guests and owners and the company’s digital capabilities.

The newly created positions seen the firm appoint directors of owner success and growth across four of its core brands, tasked with maintaining and enhancing relationships with owners and strategic partners across the industry.

Michelle Baillie has been named director of owner success and growth for Hoseasons. 

She joins from luxury holiday homes specialist Cornish Gems, where she was managing director and previously held senior leadership roles at Thomas Cook and TUI, with over 30 years’ experience in the industry.

Belinda Vasquez will join next week as director of owner success and growth for Cottages.com.

Vasquez joins from TUI, where she spent more than 25 years in a range of senior leadership roles and was most recently as director of sales and service.

Ben Lyall has been appointed as director of pricing strategy & capabilities. He will be responsible for pricing strategy, governance, and capability development across the Group, ensuring data-led pricing decisions that "balance guest demand, inventory dynamics, channel economics, and owner outcomes". 

Lyall joins from Gousto, where he led customer service & retention, as well as more than 20 years’ experience in senior commercial roles.

Mike Francis has been appointed as director of owner lifecycle. Mike joins from Ocado and previously held senior positions at Very Group and Tesco. 

He brings expertise in end-to-end lifecycle management and will focus on using data and AI to optimise the end-to-end owner journey.

Finally, Alex Loftus - who joined Awaze in 2021 - will move into the role of director of owner success and growth for Novasol and James Villas, which Awaze relaunched in December 2025 to enhance the scale and breadth of its European holiday offering for British guests. 

He brings deep industry experience from previous roles at TUI and easyJet and plays a "pivotal role" in driving Awaze’s growth across Europe.

Matthew Price, CEO of Awaze, said: “Attracting individuals of this calibre to these newly created roles reflects the strength and ambition of our business, and I look forward to working closely with this group of exceptional leaders. 

"With demand growing across our brands, our continued investment in outstanding talent alongside data and technology is enabling us to scale and accelerate our expansion across Europe," he said.

"Our focus remains firmly on delivering unrivalled experiences for our guests while helping owners unlock the full value of their properties, and this strengthened leadership team will be central to the next phase of Awaze’s growth."