Mr. Welter is the President of Ashford Inc and the Chief Operating Officer of Ashford Inc, Ashford Hospitality Trust, Inc. and Braemar Hotels & Resorts. Mr. Welter oversees the asset management, capital management, and acquisition underwriting functions for Ashford Trust and Braemar Hotels as well as the operations of Ashford Inc, including both its asset management advisory business and its hospitality products and services business. Mr. Welter is responsible for the growth of Ashford Inc’s products and services line of business through strategic acquisitions and investments in businesses that are engaged in providing hospitality products and services and developing and overseeing their operations and growth. He has led the acquisition or investment in OpenKey, J&S Audio Visual, Lismore Capital, Kalibri Labs, PURE Rooms and RED Hospitality and Leisure.

He previously served as the Executive Vice President, Asset Management for Ashford Inc, Ashford Trust and Braemar Hotels. From August 2005 until December 2010, Mr. Welter was employed by Remington Hotels, LP in various capacities, most recently serving as its Chief Financial Officer. He is a current member of Marriott’s Owner Advisor Council and serves as a Board Member for the American Hotel and Lodging Association. From July 2000 through July 2005, Mr. Welter was an investment banker at Stephens, where he worked on mergers and acquisitions, public and private equity and debt capital raises, company valuations, fairness opinions and recapitalizations. Before working at Stephens, Mr. Welter was part of Bank of America’s Global Corporate Investment Banking group. Mr. Welter is a frequent speaker and panelist for various lodging investment and development conferences, including the NYU Lodging Conference. Mr. Welter is a dual citizen of the United States and Luxembourg.

Mr. Welter earned his Bachelor of Science in Economics from Oklahoma State University, where he served as student body president and graduated summa cum laude.