Liam Doyle becomes COO at a&o Hostels

a&o Hostels, Europe’s largest provider of hostel accommodation, has appointed the Irishman Liam Doyle (41) to the newly created position of COO – Chief Operating Officer. In the coming months, Liam Doyle will develop uniform standards of operation across all 33 hostels, acting as a link between individual hostels and the company’s headquarters in Berlin. He will also be responsible for overseeing new hostels during their pre-opening phases. a&o is currently growing at a rate of two new hostels a year.

Oliver Winter, CEO of a&o, on the appointment of Liam Doyle: “With Liam, we have found a budget travel expert with excellent international connections. His long-standing experience in the sector and the enjoyment he gets from working in multi-national teams made him the perfect choice for a&o in view of our big expansion plans.”

“I look forward to working with a&o, such a rapidly expanding brand,” says Liam Doyle. “We have terrific teams. Together we will strive to further improve our products and services and reduce costs. In this way we want to enable even more guests to travel - true to our motto: 'everyone can travel'.”

In October this year, a&o Frankfurt Ostend will become the second hostel to open in the finance and banking metropolis on the Main river, making it a&o’s 34^th hostel. And in the spring of 2019, the first Polish hostel will open in the country’s capital, Warsaw.