Members of the Month: Christopher Parkes & Turgay Yuksel

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Members of the Month: Christopher Parkes & Turgay Yuksel

Our December Members of the Month are Christopher Parkes and Turgay Yuksel. Christopher and Turgay are co-founders and managing partners of ALLPRO Hospitality Group.

Christopher and Turgay have recently launched two new expansions within the ALLPRO Hospitality Group: ALLPRO International Careers and ALLPRO Bartending Academy.

With the ALLPRO International Careers they started a recruiting agency in Turkey for young international exchange students and interns. Their goal is to improve the way traditional recruiting agencies operate in Turkey and provide a concierge support to them until their program is over in the United States.

With ALLPRO Bartending Academy, they were inspired to create an educational movement aiming to equip their employees and students with the necessary hospitality skills to effectively access and contribute to their community and build a better life. Their purpose built academy will offer a realistic, high energy and enjoyable environment for impactful training. Their goals reach beyond the classroom by providing full scholarship opportunities benefiting those who need it most ( high school dropouts, low income individuals, veterans etc…) in our community.

 

 

Name: Christopher Parkes
Company: ALLPRO Hospitality Group
Role: Co-Founder and Managing Partner

 

      1. What brought you to Austin and how long have you been here?
        Me and my wife wanted to experience a new city and was ready for a change of pace. When looking for the perfect city, we came across Austin, Texas. From there we asked around and everyone had such wonderful things to say. We packed our bags and moved to the heart of Texas. We were thinking 2 possibly 3 years and now are going on year #9. Austin will always be our home!
      2. How did you get connected to AYC?
        We received a call from one of the wonderful AYC members asking if we would like to support a local Meals on Wheels event. From there, we saw additional opportunities to also support AYC and soon became a corporate member.
      3. What are you involved with in AYC AND what is your favorite part of AYC?
        Attend monthly meetings and events throughout the year. FAVE awards has been my personal #FAVE.
      4. Where can we find you brunching in Austin on any given Saturday?
        Coffee and dog park is my Saturday routine.
      5. If you could have any superpower, what would it be and what would you use it for?
        Freeing people from worry would be my superpower. I use this power each and every day!
      6. If you could have any celebrity live next door to you, who would it be?
        My current neighbors actually. They are friendly, never home and love dogs! This makes them Super VIP celebrity!
      7. If you had guests visiting Austin for the weekend, where is the first place you would take them to show them a good time?
        So many great options in ATX but would have to be on my boat on lake Travis.
      8. If you played hooky for a day, where would we find you and what would you be doing?
        With wife in San Fran at Doloris Park with our dogs.
      9. When people ask you what you do for a living, what do you tell them?
         We support luxury hotels with a variety of hospitality services, each customized to fit their unique needs.
      10. What technology could you not live without?
        dog leashes of course!
      11. Who inspires you?
        Our ALLPRO team!
      12. What is your proudest accomplishment?
        Starting a business with my dear friend Turgay Yuksel. We have accomplished so much together and look forward to our future!
      13. If you couldn’t live in Austin, where would you want to live?
         Me and my wife love San Francisco.
      14. I want to learn how to…?
        I would love to learn how to play guitar.
      15. Pick:
        Soup or Salad?         Both
        Indoors or Outdoors?         Outdoors
        Winter or Summer?         All seasons type of dude
        Tea or Coffee?         Close race but Id have to say Coffee
        Mountains or Beach?         Mountain Beach if that exists?
      16. Favorite Drink?
         Gin Gimlet in a stemmed coupe

 

 

Name: Turgay Yuksel
Company: ALLPRO Hospitality Group
Role: Founder and Managing Partner

 

      1. What brought you to Austin and how long have you been here?
        I moved to Austin from Turkey in 2002 with very little English, when i was 22 years old. I can proudly say that American dream is what brought me to this beautiful city and country which became home.17 years ago i believed that anyone, regardless of where they were born or what class they were born into, can attain their own version of success in a society like this where upward mobility is possible for everyone. My goal is to encourage young professionals that, they can still achieve this dream through sacrifice, risk-taking, and hard work, rather than by chance. I am extremely thankful to people and organizations like AYC that helped me achieve this success.
      2. How did you get connected to AYC?
        Determined to create a business that not only betters the lives of our employees but also improves our local community, we are proud to give back. Before even opening our doors we have decided to support a non-profit organization each quarter and because of how AYC connects and empowers young professionals to create business, community, and individual success we decided to be part of this amazing organization.
      3. What are you involved with in AYC AND what is your favorite part of AYC?
         We are a Corporate member and my favorite part of AYC is being able to connect with young professionals as a company that was found and being operated by young professionals.
      4. Where can we find you brunching in Austin on any given Saturday?
        You can find me eating a banana at Elizabeth Milburn park because kids are up early every weekend 🙂
      5. If you could have any celebrity live next door to you, who would it be?
        Matthew McConaughey of course. I have personally served him so many times as a busser, server, manager and business owner for many years and I would never be bored of listening him as a neighbor. Plus he is super nice.
      6. If you had guests visiting Austin for the weekend, where is the first place you would take them to show them a good time?
        I would first take them to South Congress.
      7. When people ask you what you do for a living, what do you tell them?
         Ugh, as a start-up pretty much everything at this point. From admin work to daily operations, managing social platforms to baby sitting candidates kids when they come to an interview. I am flexible 🙂
      8. What technology could you not live without?
        Smartphone of course.
      9. Who inspires you?
        My Wife Ayse and my kids Peri and Turay.
      10. What is your proudest accomplishment?
        One accomplishment I am most proud of is opening the doors of ALLPRO Hospitality in 2016. Founding my own company was only a dream.
      11. If you couldn’t live in Austin, where would you want to live?
        Antalya/Turkey (Googe it!)
      12. I want to learn how to…?
        become a better speaker in front of hundreds.