
Laura
Brinkmann
Managing Director & Founder
Biography
A private equity executive with 17 years’ experience shaping pan-European hospitality and real estate investments, Laura has led landmark restructurings, built vertically integrated platforms exceeding €2 billion in GAV, and created value across cycles and crises.
Known for cutting through noise, she combines clarity, cadence, and empathy to drive outcomes — balancing investor expectations with operator realities. Following her time at Brookfield and KSL Capital, Laura is trusted for her rapid grasp, commercial acuity, and ability to unlock solutions even in the most challenging situations.
Laura brings a rare blend of institutional pedigree, operational fluency, and board-level judgment — honed through hands-on transformations at top-tier funds, CEO-level interim roles, and complex stakeholder environments.
Career Highlights
Delivered 6-month turnaround including leadership change, market repositioning, and off-market exit for major multi-faceted Luxury Resort including Timeshare
Executed landmark French restructuring with 10,000+ creditors, Ministry of Finance involvement, and significant debt write-off
Led pan-European hospitality platform build from £430M to £1.5B, including 7 single-asset transactions and 10 asset openings
Served on 14 boards across hospitality, leisure, and student accommodation Portfolio Companies
Built PBSA platform exceeding €2B GAV, adding 900 keys in two years
Former Employers






Partner Network
Effizia can provide direct access to a large, pan-European specialist network spanning across the hospitality and leisure industry. Including Institutional funds and lenders, private capital, brokers, commercial specialists, seasoned operators and the Design, Development & Project Management sector.

Priyanka Thakrar
Acquisitions & Investment Advisory
A real estate investment professional specialising in deal acquisition and origination, Priyanka has closed transactions with a combined value of >£3 billion across the capital stack and managed a debt portfolio of <£5 billion in aggregate value.
Priyanka began her career at Goldman Sachs in New York, within the Merchant Banking real estate group before moving to KSL Capital Partners, where she focused on travel and leisure investments. Across both roles, she built expertise in complex, high-stakes structuring, spanning distressed and special situation assets, multi-jurisdictional deals, ground-up construction, and intricate regulatory and tax frameworks. Her experience spans the full breadth of real estate: multifamily, condominium, mixed-use, hospitality, student housing senior living, and beyond.
Priyanka is the founder of Riva Wellness, a hospitality-driven postnatal wellness platform setting a new standard for how mothers recover after birth. Riva is currently fundraising ahead of its first centre launch later in 2026.

Sabina Shehi
Marketing, Digital & Customer Strategy
A marketing executive with over 20 years building customer engagement, digital, and loyalty ecosystems, Sabina has led CRM transformations, lifecycle marketing builds, and direct revenue acceleration for hospitality, travel, and luxury brands across global markets.
Sabina developed her expertise at Starwood Hotels & Resorts and Marriott International, as well as in luxury fashion & retail, leading the Marriott-Starwood CRM integration, the global Bonvoy launch to 150M+ members, and a full-stack marketing agency with near-100% client renewal — operating at the intersection of customer strategy, technology, and creative execution.
Known for sharp commercial acumen, Sabina connects marketing levers directly to business KPIs — designing strategies, building tech infrastructure, and sourcing the right partners. She is trusted for diagnosing what matters, prioritising for impact, and building capabilities that last.

Giulio Leporatti
Strategic & Operational Leadership
Giulio Leporatti is a senior executive with over 20 years’ experience leading growth, transformation, and operational improvement programmes across global hotel groupsand travel & tourism driven platforms.
Giulio brings a rare combination of top-tier strategic pedigree and hands-on operational leadership. His experience spans asset-heavy and asset-light models, portfolio acquisitions and integrations, revenue management, pricing, and large-scale cost and efficiency programs. This includes: leading a €1Bn hotel portfolio acquisition for IHG, leading profitable European operations for Sonder, developing international sales teams across Asia and Middle East for McArthur Glen and driving transformation programs for Boston Consulting Group clients.
Known for his ability to navigate complexity with ease, Giulio combines deep analytical capability with meticulous attention to operational detail, enabling sustainable performance improvements across guest experience, margins,and growth. He is valued for bridging investor expectations with on-the-ground realities, leading diverse international teams, and unlocking value in high-change, high-pressure environments

Knut Wylde
Senior Advisor
A globally recognized hospitality executive with 30 years of international operational leadership across Europe, Asia, Middle East, and the Caribbean.
Most recently Multi-Property General Manager at Maybourne’s The Berkeley & The Emory, where he orchestrated a multimillion-pound repositioning that elevated The Berkeley to #1 in its competitive set and top 8 across London. Launched Cedric Grolet at The Berkeley and ABC Kitchens by Jean Georges at The Emory, introduced the La Mome partnership, and created Surrenne—London’s first experiential wellbeing members club spanning 20,000 sq ft.
Previously held leadership roles at The Lanesborough, The Savoy, Claridge’s, Badrutt’s Palace St. Moritz, One&Only Reethi Rah & Rosewood’s Caribbean resorts.
Master Innholder, former Forbes Travel Guide Standards Advisory Board member, Royal Academy of Culinary Arts Governor, and recipient of the Freedom of the City of London.
Founded Wylde Hospitality in 2024, advising owners, developers, and operators of luxury hotels, resorts, and private members clubs.