"Offering Hospitality at its Best"

Born and raised in the resort town of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Kristine Cox has always been drawn to the hospitality field. Although anyone can say that it’s within one’s natural instincts that success is derived, Kristine believes success is driven by taking the natural and making it extraordinary. The Playa Largo Resort and Spa's unique characteristics exemplify Kristine’s ability to create, inspire, and motivate Shaner Hotel Group’s vision into all that is experienced in a stay. She leverages her energetic personality and commitment to her staff to deliver memories of a lifetime for her guest.

In this sentence, you find Kristine’s contribution to sustaining and growing Shaner’s philosophy—“Inspiration provided to all who service our guests, will result in a positive and creative culture yielding incremental growth in guest experience and revenue.” Kristine’s passion has instilled a sense of inspiration in those she has supported and those she is supported by. Senior Level Leadership would undoubtedly confirm Kristine’s love for those around her. Her commitment to redefining nature is her most influential quality in transforming the Shaner Hotel Group.

A natural leader, Kristine joined the noted Playa Largo Resort and Spa, hoping to maintain and elevate the guest experience beyond customer expectations. She oversees all aspects of the 175-room resort, including day-to-day operations, staff development, financial planning, sales and revenue, and overall guest satisfaction. It is pertinent to mention Kristine Sits currently on the Key Largo Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors as well as has sat on the Boards of Hilton Head Island Chamber of Commerce, Discover Newport, The Rhode Island Hospitality Association and represented Rhode Island on The American Hotel Lodging Association board.

For Kristine, success is daily. Success is approaching each day, focusing on cultivating talented leaders into who they want to be. Success is seeing the satisfaction on the teams' faces as they achieve their goals, whether they be short-term or long-term. “The feeling I get from seeing this satisfaction is what keeps me coming back for more. Their success is my success. In fact, I have a quote that is posted over my door, “surround yourself with those that are on the same mission as you.” They way to ultimately encapsulate my success, I could not have achieved whom I am today without them,” elucidates the steadfast leader.

Kristine’s mother has been a massive inspiration in her life. She influenced Kristine both personally and professionally. “She was the one who taught me about perseverance. One must stay strong through the hardest moments, as those are the times that define us the most. But I also believe as we grow, we are influenced by many people,” says Kristine. “When my son was born, he became my inspiration. He added a different but very important dimension to my life. He gave me a stronger purpose. I continually want to show him that hard work leads to achievement and success.”

Armed with a mission to create and provide a unique, exclusive, luxury environment for guests, Kristine has been taking Playa Largo Resort and Spa to new heights. “My focus on achieving this mission starts with the people I work with. Cultivating the next leaders of the world is highly important to building success for our guests, community, and organization,” explains Kristine. “We never give up on true hospitality no matter if we are serving our internal guests or external guests. Progress is necessary, new approaches are needed, innovation within the industry is imperative. We listen attentively to our new leaders, our new workforce, our new guests. The future has always started with people.”

Kristine wants to work on progression and adaptation for the days to come. “I believe every organization is still transitioning to the new environment we work within. Post-pandemic business continues to change, so we must adapt to it. The important thing to remember during this new environment is not to lose the core of who you are as a person and an organization,” says Kristine. “To me, it’s much like building a house. Your foundation and framework must remain sturdy and consistent for the ever-changing exterior. So, I will stick to my roots and my company will remain sturdy, but we will adjust and remain agile to be the best we can be for our internal and external guests.”