Sensei announces the appointments of key leadership positions for upcoming Sensei Porcupine Creek, California

In anticipation of the upcoming opening on Nov. 1, Sensei announces the appointment of a variety of new positions to lead the team at Sensei Porcupine Creek in Rancho Mirage, California. With extensive backgrounds in the world of health and wellness and luxury hospitality, recent appointments include Julie Oliff, General Manager; Tiffany Li, Director of Operations; Andrea Wieland, Director of Wellness; Cameron Petrelli, Director of Food & Beverage; Seeun “Wezy” We, Executive Chef and Takahiro Masuno, Head Sushi Chef at Sensei by Nobu.

As Sensei’s second retreat and first United States mainland property, Sensei Porcupine Creek is converting a 230-acre private estate, nestled against the Santa Rosa mountains in Rancho Mirage, California, into an ultra-luxury wellbeing experience. The tranquil and intimate setting will feature a small number of hotel rooms in the former estate house, as well as private villas clustered throughout the expansive property. Renowned for its private golf course, world-class tennis facilities and notable guests, Sensei Porcupine Creek will offer equally as immersive spa, nutrition, movement, and other wellness and sports programs as found at its sister facility, Sensei Lāna’i, A Four Seasons Resort in Hawaii.

“As we approach the highly anticipated opening of our second property, Sensei Porcupine Creek, it’s been imperative for us to build a team of the best minds in the luxury hospitality and wellbeing space,” said Alexandra Walterspiel, Chief Operating Officer. “This talented group is composed of admirable leaders who embody our philosophies and we are thrilled that they will bring their impressive backgrounds to this exciting expansion of the Sensei brand.”

Julie Oliff

Oliff joins the property as General Manager of Sensei Porcupine Creek. Oliff has a long history in luxury hospitality, having been with the St. Regis brand for 10 years, serving as General Manager of the St. Regis Residences in Rye, New York, as well as Director of Operations and Spa Director in Aspen, Colorado. Prior to her tenure with St. Regis, she gained tremendous experience in the luxury wellness space, serving as Spa Director and Director of Recreation for The Ritz-Carlton Club, Aspen Highlands and St. Thomas. She also proudly served as a member of the board of directors for ISPA for two terms.

Tiffany Li

Li has been appointed as Director of Operations at Sensei Porcupine Creek and is instrumental in crafting the overall on-property experience. Li has extensive leadership experience in luxury resorts, having served most recently as Director of Rooms at 1 Hotels. Prior to that, she worked with Montage International at the Beverly Hills location for more than six years in progressive leadership positions.

Andrea Wieland, PhD

As Director of Wellness, Wieland works closely with Sensei’s Wellness Science team to curate and deliver wellness programming and experiences. Wieland is a licensed psychologist with a PhD and MBA and was formerly the President of Winning Systems, which provides individual, team and leadership performance and health coaching. She also has an extensive background in sports performance, serving as Associate Athletic Director and Director of Sports Performance at the University of Pennsylvania. Andrea is a proud member of the 1996 US Olympic Field Hockey team.

Cameron Petrelli

Petrelli joined as the Director of Food & Beverage, spearheading all operations including Sensei by Nobu, an exclusive collaboration between Sensei co-founder Dr. David Agus and Nobu Matsuhisa that is rooted in Sensei’s philosophies on nutrition. Prior to Sensei, he was the Director of Food & Beverage at Davidson Hospitality Group. Petrelli also has a long history working in the F&B space with Fairmont in Dubai, Hawaii, San Diego and more, as well as The Ritz-Carlton in Dallas. He attended culinary school at the Culinary Institute of America.

Seeun "Wezy" We

We is Sensei Porcupine Creek’s Executive Chef. A graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education in New York City, We worked with some of New York’s greatest chefs including Jean Georges, Masaharu Morimoto and David Chang. About 13 years ago, We began her journey with Nobu at his Tribeca location, followed by roles around the world with the brand including Lana’i, Malibu, Malaysia, Palo Alto and most recently Spain.

Takahiro Masuno

Serving as Head Sushi Chef, Masuno will run the exclusive Nobu Sushi Bar available as part of Sensei by Nobu. Masuno has over 20 years of experience focused on Japanese cuisine, originally hailing from Japan and completing his training in the United States. He was previously with the Ojiya Corporation in both California and Hawaii, having served as General Manager and Executive Chef at the brand’s numerous restaurant locations.