Michael Achenbaum
President & Founder at Gansevoort Hotel Group
A little bit about Michael…
Michael Achenbaum, President and Founder of Gansevoort Hotel Group (GHG), is credited with helping to galvanize Manhattan’s Meatpacking District with his first hospitality venture in 2004: the iconic Gansevoort Meatpacking Hotel.
Michael’s skill for identifying and revitalizing up and coming neighborhoods does not stop with the Meatpacking District. Michael successfully developed and launched the Curtain Hotel and Members’ Club in Shoreditch, London before selling the property in 2020. Since then, his original project, Gansevoort Meatpacking, has undergone a multimillion dollar top to bottom renovation, bringing the property to the forefront of luxury stays in New York City and once again breathing new life into the neighborhood following the COVID-19 pandemic. Works from Achenbaum’s personal art collection can be found throughout the hotel, lending his personal touch to the property. Michael involves himself in every detail of his properties, from working with neighboring retail and restaurant partners to lending his eye to the interior design process. An active part of the Meatpacking District community, Achenbaum is also a board member of the BID, the neighborhood’s business and development association.
Since 1999, Michael has developed over $1 billion in property. Prior to entering into hospitality, Achenbaum helmed a career in finance, holding positions at Bear Stearns and Nomura Securities. Michael graduated with a degree in History from the University of Michigan, where he founded the George Mitchell/Archie Wilkins Scholarship providing financial assistance to local students in the Big Siblings program, and also obtained Master’s degrees in law and Business from New York University.