Growing up in Utah, Taylor Olson longed to move to sunny West Hollywood. To make his big city dream come true, he joined the hospitality industry and never looked back.
“Since I was a kid, I always wanted to be in LA,” says Taylor. “I used to visit friends here and now I’m the person who gets to live here. My career is what afforded me the opportunity.”
Inspired by his family in the industry, Taylor used his first job as a night auditor in his hometown to learn the ropes. Quickly discovering a knack for numbers, Taylor quickly moved into the world of accounting.
“It’s a unique balance between the business side and creating amazing guest experiences,” says Taylor. “You don’t realize how much is happening behind the scenes from a guest perspective.”
Holding positions as Staff Accountant and Assistant Director of Finance in Salt Lake City, Washington D.C., and Denver, Taylor traveled all over the country in increasingly larger roles.. When he received the call for a job as Director of Finance at La Peer Hotel in Los Angeles, he knew he had made it.
When he first joined hospitality, he made the tough decision to put a college degree on hold to make sure he could provide for himself independently.
“When I started I was in college,” says Taylor. “I made the decision to kick-start my career to keep a roof over my head.”
Now that Taylor has reached his ultimate dream location, he is finishing school via online classes at the Cornell School of Hotel Administration and celebrating an incredible upcoming year with his team.
“I catch myself smiling throughout the day because this is my life,” enthuses Taylor. “I’ve gone through so much in the past ten years. It’s incredible I made it to where I dreamed of being since age 18.”