Matt Marquis has been named president of Pacifica Hotel Co., continuing a tradition of family ownership at the nationally ranked hotel management company that manages 25 hotels in California, Hawaii and Florida.

Marquis, who has been involved in the real estate investment industry for nearly 20 years, is currently president of Invest West Financial Corp., which is celebrating its 40th year of business. IWFC, the parent corporation of Pacifica Hotel Co., was founded by Dale Marquis, Matt’s father.

“We are transitioning our organization from first to second generation at a very important time in our company,” Dale Marquis said. “We are actively involved in completing a substantial renovation at our historic Hawaiian property, King Kamehameha’s Kona Beach Hotel, in the final phases of redeveloping the Jamaica Bay Inn in Marina del Rey, and getting ready to launch several other redevelopment projects in Southern California.”

The announcement, which also includes the appointment of Arthur McNary as Pacifica’s CFO, is the result of detailed business succession planning undertaken several years ago. Matt Marquis has worked in increasingly responsible positions at IWFC during the past 15 years and now will be president of both firms. Dale Marquis will continue to be active in his role as chairman of the companies.

“We have been very proactive in ensuring a smooth and orderly succession at Pacifica Hotel Co.,” Matt Marquis said. “I am honored to be able to continue to work with my father as we move both companies forward to even higher levels of success.”

Matt Marquis began his business career on Wall Street with Dean Witter Realty Inc., where he was an analyst and asset manager on a diversified real estate portfolio valued at more than $1 billion. He subsequently joined Investcorp International to assist in the reorganization of its real estate department, working with senior management on the acquisition, disposition and asset management of more than $700 million in real estate investments.

In 1997, he joined his father at Pacifica Real Estate Group as an asset manager responsible for the commercial real estate portfolio. In 2000, Matt and Dale Marquis activated IWFC as the family’s primary business and acquired Pacifica Hotel Co. from their partners. Today, they work together in creating and developing a dynamic family business focused on real estate and hospitality investments for the future.

— Steve Fox is a publicist.