The Story Behind Gillis Sales

After more than three decades in hospitality, our founder Tammy Gillis saw the same challenge repeat itself again and again.

Hotel owners and operators continue to be challenged to grow occupancy, increase revenue, and compete in increasingly crowded markets. Many still lack the sales resources, systems, and support needed to do it effectively.

At the time, Tammy was building sales certification and training programs for major hotel brands. While working closely with owners and operators, she uncovered a critical gap: many hotels had no dedicated sales team to execute the very hotel sales strategies they were being taught.

The problem wasn’t a lack of opportunity.

The problem was a lack of sales infrastructure, training, and execution.

That insight led to the creation of Gillis Sales in 2013.

What began as a pilot program with a major brand and eight of their underperforming hotels has evolved into one of North America’s leading hotel sales organizations. Today, Gillis provides hotel sales support, business development, and revenue growth solutions to more than 350 hotels across multiple brands and management companies throughout Canada and the United States.

Our mission remains simple: to make sales accessible and achievable.

Every day, we help hotel owners and operators build stronger sales cultures, improve hotel sales performance, create more consistent revenue growth, and uncover opportunities that might otherwise be left on the table.

Because sales should never be left to chance.

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A Culture Built for Performance

We have proudly built a people-first culture that attracts experienced hospitality professionals and empowers them with the training, leadership, and resources they need to succeed. The result is above-average industry retention rates, strong performance, and a team that becomes a seamless extension of our clients’ organizations.

We believe employees thrive when intention and investments are made across these pillars:

Inclusion: Creating a workplace where everyone feels valued and connected.
Wellness: Supporting our team’s well-being so they can perform at their best.
Growth: Investing in continuous learning, coaching, and career development.
Purpose: Empowering our people to make a meaningful impact within our company, our clients, and our communities.

By investing in our people, we have become an Employer of Choice. The result is a team that delivers stability, protects our clients’ investments, and drives consistent sales performance.

Our Values

Solutions

We don’t make excuses – we always find solutions to get the best possible result.

Care

We care about you as family and go the extra mile to create long-term personal connections.

Excellence

We are never satisfied with good – we always strive for great. Our goal is to deliver an outcome that will “wow”.

Entrepreneurship

We live the entrepreneurial spirit where we constantly push ourselves and our clients to reach their goals.

360° Perspective

We take a holistic & integrated approach. We think like a hotel owner and look at the entire sales strategy holistically.

Trust

We serve as a trusted advisor. We work closely with our clients to navigate through their challenges and lead them to their goals.

Simplicity

We take the complicated & impossible and make it uncomplicated & possible. We will simplify and solve any given sales challenge.

We believe that sales is the life blood for all organizations.

Our mission is to make sales accessible and achievable
to all hotel owners.

Shared Client Experiences

“Gillis is one of our most valued and trusted advisors and partners.”

“We had the good fortune of engaging Gillis after years of managing our sales effort in-house. They came highly recommended through brand leadership and seasoned sales professionals, and they haven’t disappointed. Despite only a few months into our relationship, they have had an immediate impact on our hotels and key account relationships. The Gillis team has already established themselves as one of our most valued and trusted advisors and partners. They have always displayed the professionalism, passion and accountability demanded by their profession.”

– Perry Batke, CHA, General Manager, Denham Hospitality Organization

“The math is simple: Gillis equals heads-in-beds!”

“The sales pros at Gillis have been instrumental in building occupancy at Motel 6 and Studio 6 hotels in Canada over the past several years. Working collaboratively with owners and managers, Gillis takes the time required to find and convert prospects to guests. Gillis provides a best-in-class solution for hotels that don’t have a dedicated, well-trained sales team.”

– Irwin M. Prince, President & COO, Realstar Hospitality

“Gillis has become our most effective resource.”

"As a management company with 4 smaller hotels in busy transient markets, we have struggled to keep our sales and marketing costs relative to the size of our hotel. The cost and time invested in attracting, training, and retaining good salespeople with the current job climate can be not only daunting but frustrating with turnover. With varying demand in the market, a sales manager needs to recognize when to take the business, and when to say no to it. The right rate, at the right time!

We have solved all these problems through turning this demanding role in 3 of our hotels over to Gillis Sales.

Gillis is a trusted, credible partner who has supplied me with experienced professionals who know the fastest route to the business I need. This has become our most effective resource, and I 100% recommend the Gillis solution to my colleagues."

– Patti Barker, Vice President of Hospitality, Metropolitan Hospitality Management

“Giving us confidence no matter what comes up.”

“We have a diverse portfolio of hotels, both full-service and limited-service. Having a company that can expertly do both is important. Gillis serves as a stand-alone effort for some hotels and, in others, is integrated with our on-site sales team to maximize revenue and efforts. This helps in responsiveness when opportunities present themselves and fosters a hands-on tailored effort for each location.

Their above-property team is also there for the more complex, non-routine issues, giving us confidence no matter what comes up. That kind of expertise and attentiveness has made all the difference. Another benefit is that the RDOS teams have hotel experience and understand the day-to-day nuances that our team faces and can adapt. This helps avoid delays or the sacrifice of customer experience as situations arise.”