By Staff writer, MyVue News.com,
Basseterre, 5th January, 2021, (MyVue News.com)- The hotel pioneer and developer, Gordon Butch Stewart of Jamaica, has died and the tributes to his legacy have started to pour in from all corners.
In his tribute, Jamaican Prime Minister, Andrew Holness, described Stewart as one of the country’s most brilliant, innovative and transformative business minds.
Stewart, who was the founder and chairman of the ATL Group of Companies, died on Monday night, (4th January,2021).
For approximately four decades, he was able to create and develop the worldwide hotel brands “Sandals Resorts” and “Beaches Resorts”.
The Sandals brand is has a leading presence in Caribbean destinations like Jamaica, Antigua, St. Lucia, Grenada, Barbados, Bahamas.
While making the public announcement of his dad’s passing, Adam Stewart, who is also the Deputy Chairman of the ATL Group, did not disclose the cause of his father’s death, but instead stated that “He chose to keep a very recent health diagnosis private and we respected that wish.”
Prime Minister Holness said “Butch was a man ahead of his time, he had an eye for details and his ability to market and deliver world class service in any endeavor was tremendously distinctive.”
The younger Stewart, also credited his dad for his marketing abilities, saying, “He was a marketing genius and talented showman, but those who knew him best recognised that he was a dreamer who could dream bigger and better than anyone.”
The news of Stewart’s passing, according to Adam, who was quoted in the Jamaica Observer, was “almost unbelievable”, since he was as involved and forward-thinking as ever.
The Observer was another of Stewart’s creation. He was the owner of the newspaper which has become one of Jamaica’s top media outlets.
Butch Stewart was 79 years old.
File Photo: Gordon Butch Stewart