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Erin brought a level of clarity to our sales structure that we hadn't been able to achieve on our own. The results were immediate and measurable.
Erin Smith brings 25 years of experience leading and restructuring sales organizations across the hospitality and outdoor hospitality industries — work grounded in the belief that strong performance is the result of intentional design, not effort alone.
Erin's career began in her family's hotel, working her way up through every aspect of the business — from housekeeping to operations, and eventually into sales. Those early years on-property shaped how she sees the sales function today: she saw firsthand that sales was rarely a dedicated discipline in those environments; it most often fell to operators already stretched thin by the daily realities of running a hotel.
That observation stayed with her — but her path moved quickly beyond it. She transitioned into sales leadership and spent the next 25 years inside full-service, luxury, and outdoor hospitality, leading sales organizations across multi-property portfolios and rebuilding the ones that weren't working.
From overseeing regional portfolios at Sage Hospitality and Atrium Hospitality to restructuring sales at Pacifica Hotels and scaling AutoCamp's sales function, Erin's work has consistently centered on one thing: fixing broken sales organizations through structure, strategy, and leadership. Across every engagement, the outcome has been the same — sustainable, designed performance.
Aurelia Hospitality Consulting is the natural extension of that work — a boutique advisory firm founded on the belief that strong sales performance is not accidental. It is built.
Began in her family's hotel and worked through every aspect of the business — housekeeping, operations, and into sales. Climbed the sales ladder through Director of Sales & Marketing roles at properties including The Mining Exchange, Westin Virginia Beach, and area director roles within Hilton — building the ground-floor operational understanding that grounds her work today.
Provided strategic oversight and sales discipline for a portfolio that ranged from 13 to 27 hotels spanning the continental United States — coast to coast, north to south. Six years of building, restructuring, and aligning sales teams across an evolving multi-property portfolio.
Oversaw all aspects of sales and marketing across a portfolio of 22 large convention hotels — leading commercial strategy across one of the largest convention-focused portfolios in the U.S.
Brought in during the middle of the pandemic to rebuild the sales organization and position it for post-pandemic recovery. Led the restructuring of sales across the largest operator of boutique hotels on the U.S. West Coast — implementing the operating model, leadership cadence, and commercial alignment that drove two consecutive years of record-breaking, historic revenue generation, with $12M in growth over the portfolio's previous historical high.
Joined AutoCamp to design and scale the sales function for one of the most distinctive outdoor hospitality brands in the U.S. Built and grew the sales organization to support significant year-over-year revenue acceleration across the portfolio.
Founded Aurelia to bring the same structured, intentional approach to sales organization design to a select group of hospitality leaders each year — partnering with owners, operators, and executive teams to build sales functions engineered for sustainable performance.
Aurelia's perspective is shaped by what Erin has seen consistently across 25 years of leading hospitality sales organizations.
Sales teams rarely fail for lack of effort or talent. They struggle when the structure, strategy, and systems required to perform have not been intentionally designed.
Effective sales design has to match the realities of the business it serves — its size, its commercial disciplines, and how its sales, marketing, and revenue functions actually operate. Frameworks borrowed from other industries — or from a different scale of operation — rarely hold up in practice.
Strategy and design only matter when paired with the leadership cadence, accountability, and infrastructure that turn intention into consistent performance.
"Amplifying the achievements and influence of women who lead, innovate, and inspire."
In 2026, Erin was recognized by Influential Women — a platform amplifying the work of women shaping their industries — and invited to publish a three-part series on the foundations of sales organization design in hospitality.
Recognition from organizations whose endorsement reflects the standards Aurelia holds itself to — alongside active membership in the industry communities Erin is committed to serving.
The global leader in hospitality sales, marketing, and revenue optimization education and community.
Visit HSMAI
A global community of professionals committed to the strategic use of motivational experiences and incentive travel.
Visit SITE
The largest meeting and event industry association, connecting professionals across planning, hospitality, and venue management.
Visit MPIAurelia is intentionally boutique by design. Engagements are deep, hands-on, and tailored to the realities of each business.
Aurelia partners with a select group of hospitality leaders each year. These are a few of their reflections on the engagement.
Erin brought a level of clarity to our sales structure that we hadn't been able to achieve on our own. The results were immediate and measurable.
Her structured approach to sales diagnostics uncovered hidden inefficiencies that were holding our team back from hitting growth targets.
Erin's partnership changed our culture from reactive to intentional. We finally have a sales operating model that works for our unique brand.
Working with Erin is like having a seasoned sales executive on your leadership team without the overhead. She is direct, strategic, and deeply invested in the outcome.
She does not just diagnose. She builds. The frameworks she put in place are still driving how our team operates a year later.
Erin has a rare ability to see the whole organization. She connects sales strategy to operations, leadership, and revenue in a way that finally makes everything cohesive.
Beyond client engagements, Erin remains an active voice in the hospitality industry — speaking at conferences and regional meetings, contributing to industry publications, and participating in associations that support the next generation of hospitality leadership.
She is a member of several industry organizations and is a frequent contributor to conversations around sales strategy, organizational design, and the realities of running a commercial function in today's hospitality environment.
Aurelia partners with a small group of hospitality leaders each year. If you're ready to bring structure to your sales function, Erin would welcome the opportunity to connect.