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Raymond L. "Rip" Gellein, Jr. is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Starwood Vacation Ownership, Inc., the vacation ownership division of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. Mr. Gellein reports directly to Steve Heyer, CEO of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. Starwood Vacation Ownership (SVO), formerly Vistana, Inc., is considered the "blue chip" company of the vacation ownership industry and has successfully grown from a single resort in Orlando, Florida to a wholly-owned subsidiary of one of the largest hospitality companies in the world.
Mr. Gellein joined the company in 1980 and has served as Chairman or Chief Executive Officer since that time. Mr. Gellein leads the integration of the company's successful timeshare operations with the brands, resources and assets of Starwood.
Since the company's inception in 1980, Mr. Gellein has been instrumental in leading the company's development, which included acquiring the assets of the Vistana entities from General Development Corporation in 1991, launching a successful Initial Public Offering of its stock in 1997 and selling the company to Starwood in October 1999.
Prior to joining Vistana, Mr. Gellein was a Vice President and Division Manager in Real Estate for the Continental Illinois National Bank and Trust Company ofChicago. He holds an MBA in Finance, Accounting and Marketing from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, as well as a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Psychology from Denison University. Mr. Gellein is Chairman of the American Resort Development Association (ARDA) and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Florida Chapter of Junior Achievement.
He is based at the Starwood Vacation Ownership headquarters office in Orlando, Florida.
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