ZHI WEN AGON, 1900's Pioneer From a small village in Xin Hui Guangdong, Zhi Wen Agon emigrated to Cuba as an early Chinese pioneer seeking business opportunities in a new land. After years of success as a happy trading merchant, Zhi Wen took on a new challenge, or hobby, and opened a series of restaurants and home-style inns. Years later, homesick for his motherland, he sold his properties and he and his family returned to China where his early tradition of hotel development was continued in Hong Kong by his son, Carlos.
	CARLOS AGON, 1950-60's Hong Kong Developer Working for the Spanish Fathers, who owned a prime lot in Hong Kong's Tsimshatsui area, Carlos Agon was engaged as the hotel's General Manager and chief designer, and he opened what was to be known as the Miramar Hotel in 1951. Together with some other investors, he developed and built the Astor Hotel in Tsimshatsui, a boutique hotel of 138 rooms, well-ahead of its time, appreciated for its simplicity and functionality and attention to detail. In 1961, Carlos was a co-founding member of the Hong Kong Hotels Association and also the organization's first Chairman. He later developed what was the Ambassador Hotel, also in Tsimshatsui Hong Kong, and then the luxurious President Hotel on Tsimshatsui's Nathan Road which was later named as the Hyatt Regency Hotel. Carlos then moved into the property development business full-time working on several residential properties world-wide. The President Hotel, later known as the Hyatt Regency Hotel Hong Kong circa 1964
	RICHARD AGON, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer From hotel operations to the corporate boardroom, or from advising today’s leading hoteliers, to advising hotel investors, Richard Agon, a Hong Kong born Chinese, his breadth of experience spanning over 40 years is truly unique. He holds the distinction of being one of the first five hotel executives in the world to obtain both the Certified Hotel Administrator (CHA) and Certified Hospitality Accountant Executive (CHAE) industry designations. Richard’s extensive years in hotel operations includes experience in varied hotel departments including rooms, food and beverage, sales and marketing, and overall administration. Thereafter, he taught and managed one of Canada’s leading hospitality schools, graduating 1,500 students in 12 years, many of whom today hold key executive appointments in the industry. 46 years in the hotel industry No of Years Hotel Operations 15 years Hotel Industry Educator 12 years Hotel Corporate Executive 7 years Hotel Industry Consultant 12 years Relocating to Asia, Richard later took the challenge of joining international conglomerates in senior head office roles. This included his role as President and Chief Executive Officer of NYSE publicly-listed Renaissance Hotel Group where he was instrumental in the listing process. As well, as Owner’s Representative, he worked with major international hotel chains, overseeing and being responsible for a portfolio of over 140 hotels worldwide. He was also active in buying and selling of properties and hotel chains. Notable properties he oversaw included the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong and the Regent Hong Kong managed by Hyatt International and Regent respectively. He began his own hospitality consultancy firm in 1996 and today is Chief Executive Officer of Agon Hotels and Resorts Ltd.. He and his group offer innovative, end-to-end solutions to hotel investors, operators, and hoteliers in the areas of hotel management, consulting, recruitment, training, and general sales. Richard has worked on numerous hotel/apartment development projects worldwide in China, South-East Asia, Canada, Hong Kong, etc., that would bring international expertise to the Hotel including Consulting, Recruitment, Training and Management.
	DARRYL AGON, Executive Director After graduating with a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of British Columbia, Darryl worked for two of the leading “Big 4” consulting firms – PricewaterhouseCoopers and Deloitte Touche. Originally beginning his hospitality operations career in catering and later with hotels and the Regent brand name in the Front Office, he relocated to Hong Kong on 2001 where he has been a hospitality consultant for the past several years. As an Executive Director of Agon Hotels and Resorts Ltd., he is responsible for the delivery of end-to-end solutions to hospitality clients, spanning each of the group’s practice areas, mainly hotel management, consulting, recruitment, training, and general sales. With AGON, he has led several project teams including market studies and development planning and design for various hotels and resorts in Lijiang (a five-star resort development in a United Nations world heritage site), Beijing (one five-star luxury hotel of over 140,000 square metres of constructed GFA, as well as one four-star hotel), Shanghai (including two resort hotels of five and four-stars), Macau (two five-star internationally branded resort hotels), Nankang (a five-star hotel in Jiangxi), Sanya (planning of a beach side five-star resort), Dehua (a four-star hotel in Fujian province), Hong Kong (a three-star tourist class hotel), and Guangzhou (a three-star tourist hotel). He has also been active in providing other general hospitality consulting services to leading hotel groups and investors including assisting with customer satisfaction reporting, quality assurance initiatives, legal reports. Combining his business acumen with hospitality experience and overall creativity, he brings unique perspectives and holistic solutions to each of AGON’s clients.