Cornell Nolan School affiliations:
Pillsbury Institute for Hospitality Entrepreneurship Advisory Board
Key areas of expertise
- Startups and entrepreneurship
- Travel technology
- Hotel and airline revenue management
- E-Commerce
- Hospitality distribution
Tom Botts is a senior executive, investor and advisor in the travel industry. He brings extensive expertise in e-commerce, revenue management and technology across the airline, hotel and online intermediary industries.
He is currently President, Flex Pay at Upgrade, Inc, a multi-billion dollar fintech focused on consumer lending. Tom’s previous company, Uplift, was acquired by Upgrade in 2023. Serving the world’s top enterprise level travel and retail brands, Flex Pay’s complete range of flexible payment options drive higher conversion and loyalty for partners, while giving customers a simple, surprise-free way to pay over time.
Tom joined Uplift from Miraval Group, a rapidly expanding wellness brand, where he served as SVP and CMO. Private equity firm KSL Capital Partners recruited Tom to Miraval where he was a key member of the leadership team which successfully sold the brand and resorts to Hyatt Hotels in early 2017. Prior to joining Miraval, he served as Denihan Hospitality’s Executive Vice President and Chief Customer Officer.
Earlier, Tom was a co-founder and managing partner of New York City-based Hudson Crossing, LLC, a leading business and technology advisory firm serving the travel, financial services and related industries. He also served as Vice President – Global Travel Industry Sales and Strategy for Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. where he led a sales and marketing team responsible for $2 billion in revenue generation across multiple distribution channels. Tom earlier led product and supplier relations for Hotwire, which was successfully sold to Expedia Group.
Tom began his career with Delta Air Lines and held roles of increasing responsibility in customer service, technology, revenue management and e-commerce.
Tom is an active investor in the travel sector. Previous and current investments include Duetto Research (acquired by GrowthCurve Capital), Thayer Ventures, Rocketmiles (acquired by Booking Holdings) and Vacatia.com. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Logistics and Marketing from the University of Missouri.