About Us

Ashley brings over 15 years of experience in lifestyle and boutique hospitality, with a career spanning development, operations, and global brand leadership at the world’s largest hotel company, and now as the founder of AEP Consulting. Having sat on all sides of the table, she brings a rare combination of strategic insight, cross-disciplinary thinking, and industry relationships to the earliest and most critical stages of hospitality development.

Ashley’s work is rooted in guiding ownership through the decisions that define a project. She partners with hotel owners and developers from the outset, shaping vision, refining concepts, and establishing the strategic direction before design and construction begin. Her ability to bridge creative thinking with disciplined development strategy allows her to translate early ideas into clear, executable hospitality concepts.

Her approach is both strategic and deeply hands-on. She works across concept development, market positioning, brand affiliation, and team assembly, ensuring every decision supports a cohesive and differentiated outcome. Acting as a trusted advisor to ownership, she ensures alignment among stakeholders and maintains continuity from early vision through execution.

The projects she helps shape are not only well-positioned but purposeful. They are designed to resonate within their markets, create lasting value for ownership, and stand apart in an increasingly competitive hospitality landscape.

A recognized voice in the industry, Ashley speaks at leading hospitality conferences and contributes to top trade publications. Based in Memphis and working nationally, she partners with developers and ownership groups looking to build thoughtful, distinctive hospitality projects.

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The Wayback

About
OPENED
November 2023
MARKET
Pigeon Forge, Tennessee
PROJECT TYPE
Full renovation and conversion of existing asset
CLIENT
Aatmos Hospitality
KEY COUNT
134
The Opportunity
THE OPPORTUNITY
In early 2021, AEP was tasked with reimagining the former Island Drive Lodge — a dated exterior-corridor property with little obvious promise. What others might have passed over, the team saw clearly: the laid-back bones of a site waiting for the right vision. Identifying that potential is one thing; architecting the path from a run-of-the-mill economy property to a high-design destination is another. That full-spectrum capability — from strategic insight to executed reality — is what AEP brought to Pigeon Forge.

Existing
Conditions

The Vision
The creative direction centered on nostalgia, whimsy, and modern ease. The goal was to transform a standard exterior-corridor footprint into a carefree atmosphere anchored by a signature swim club. This Palm Springs-inspired aesthetic was the strategic engine to secure a Tribute Portfolio affiliation and introduce a new category of boutique hospitality to Pigeon Forge.
*Inspiration Imagery
Our Role
Services
From possibility to property — AEP saw it first, and saw it through.
  • Conversion assessment and site planning
  • Proforma and feasibility analysis
  • Concept creation and market positioning
  • Brand affiliation strategy, flag selection, and market positioning guidance
  • Team selection, contract negotiation, and onboarding (including ID, procurement, branding, landscape, etc.)
  • Owner representation and creative direction
  • Budget and timeline accountability — with guest experience top-of-mind
  • Anticipatory value engineering exercise
  • Brand creation, including strategy, website development, and training in partnership with The Saturday Crowd
  • Liaison between ownership and brand affiliate
  • Programming and operational planning
  • OS&E specification
  • Interior and exterior signage directionInterior and exterior styling
  • Retail curation and specification
Our Role
Services
From possibility to property — AEP saw it first, and saw it through.
  • Conversion assessment and site planning
  • Proforma and feasibility analysis
  • Concept creation and market positioning
  • Brand affiliation strategy, flag selection, and market positioning guidance
  • Team selection, contract negotiation, and onboarding (including ID, procurement, branding, landscape, etc.)
  • Owner representation and creative direction
  • Budget and timeline accountability — with guest experience top-of-mind
  • Anticipatory value engineering exercise
  • Brand creation, including strategy, website development, and training in partnership with The Saturday Crowd
  • Liaison between ownership and brand affiliate
  • Programming and operational planning
  • OS&E specification
  • Interior and exterior signage directionInterior and exterior styling
  • Retail curation and specification
The Outcome
The Wayback didn’t just open — it arrived as a definitive marker for the “new” Pigeon Forge. Recognition followed almost immediately, including a place on TIME Magazine’s World’s Greatest Places of 2024. Commercially, the results matched the acclaim: the property vaulted from a 2-star economy asset to a 4-star upscale destination. Achieved through a lean investment, the turnaround stands as a blueprint for unlocking value in underperforming properties. The creation of Paloma Kitchen and Swim Club extended that value further, generating revenue beyond guestrooms. And for the ownership group, it’s more than a performing asset; it’s a portfolio-defining property that changed what’s possible.
More Work