Wit Tuttell, director of Visit North Carolina, has been named national State Tourism Director of the Year. Tuttell was announced as the honoree before more than 1,000 destination marketing professionals at the U.S. Travel Association’s just concluded Educational Seminar for Tourism Organizations (ESTO) conference, held this year in Grand Rapids, Michigan. U.S. Travel’s National Council of State Tourism Directors—a body representing the official tourism offices of all states and U.S. territories—votes on the award annually ahead of ESTO.
Tuttell has 30 years of experience in the tourism industry and has been with North Carolina tourism since 2006. He previously worked for Universal Studios Florida and the Orlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau, Inc. Tuttell has also lent his expertise to U.S. Travel Association’s board of directors and has served as chair of Travel South USA’s board of directors. Candidates for State Tourism Director of the Year are nominated by state and territory tourism directors. A slate of three finalists is presented annually for selection by ballot.
Roger Dow, the outgoing president & CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, is the 2022 inductee into U.S. Travel’s Hall of Leaders. He will be the 104th travel luminary inducted into the Hall, which was established in 1969 with the goal of recognizing “sustained, noteworthy contributions that have positively impacted the travel industry.” Dow has led the organization for 17 years, announcing his retirement last year. Prior to his tenure at U.S. Travel, he worked for 34 years at Marriott International, where he led the company’s global sales and marketing functions. He notably developed the first hotel loyalty program, which would become Marriott Bonvoy and the related Marriott credit card. Dow has received many honors and accolades during his career and has served on many boards, including ASAE, GWSAE, MPI Foundation, PCMA, Tourism Diversity Matters, RE/MAX International, the Travel Institute, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Committee of 100, among others. Dow will be honored by the U.S. Travel board of directors at a dinner on November 14, 2022.
The Visit USA UK Association has appointed Kate Kenward as its new CEO. She brings to the position almost 30 years’ travel industry experience in association leadership, destination marketing, public relations and promotions. Before joining Visit USA UK, she worked as a board director for the African Travel & Tourism Association—serving in the last six months of this period as the organization’s managing director. Previously, she undertook the executive director role at AITO (The Specialist Travel Association) for 11 years, raising the group’s profile while leading their strategic and digital transformation.
Sabre Corporation has announced that Wade Jones, executive vice president and chief product officer of its Travel Solutions business, has departed the company. He has been succeeded by Garry Wiseman(right), who joined the company on August 1. Jones will remain with Sabre for a period of transition, before officially stepping away this fall. Wiseman brings more than 25 years of product, technology and digital leadership experience in developing and operating large-scale platforms at some of the world’s most innovative technology companies, including Dell, eBay, Microsoft, Nautilus and Salesforce.
It has been announced that Rainer Stoll, who has managed the German nature tour operator, Travel-to-Nature, for nearly three decades, will be reinforced by a second managing director, who will take over the position of CEO. In addition to his role in Travel-to-Nature, Stoll has organized and/or managed numerous tourism-related ventures over the years.
The Western National Parks Association has announced that Marie Buck has been named as its new CEO. Buck was most recently chief operating officer for the Grand Canyon Conservancy, where she successfully managed operations, organization strategies, and systems. She previously served on the board of directors for the Conservancy. As the senior director of business operations at Phoenix Raceway (NASCAR), Marie’s leadership was instrumental in the $180 million facility modernization project resulting in substantial increases in revenue and customer satisfaction. Buck has lived in Arizona most of her life and is an avid outdoorswoman. She succeeds Jim Cook who is retiring after more than 11 years.
TTC Tour Brands is expanding its UK sales team, with the appointment of two new sales managers: Freya Sutcliffe and Harry Taylor. Sutcliffe joins TTC Tour Brands from Jet2holidays, where she was national non-retail business development manager. Taylor recently joined the TTC team from JTA Travel.
TTC Tour Brands comprises sister brands Contiki, Costsaver Tours, Insight Vacations Luxury Gold, and Trafalgar. Both Sutcliffe and Taylor will report to Becky Francis.
The leading travel management company BCD Travel has appointed Michèle Lawley to the role of president, Europe. She will take over complete operational and financial responsibility for BCD’s activities in Europe, focusing on creating and capitalizing on opportunities to ensure long-term, sustainable growth in the region. A long-time travel industry veteran, Lawley brings over 35 years of industry experience to her new role. She was previously senior vice president, Europe. BCD Travel has its global headquarters in Utrecht, with regional headquarters in Atlanta, London and Singapore
Destination Toronto has announced the appointment of Paula Port as its new vice president of global marketing. With more than twenty years of experience and expertise at Destination Toronto, Port will lead the strategic development and implementation of marketing and communications for the destination. In her most recent role as director, brand & content, Port established content marketing as a core function of the organization, launching the re-imagined content hub DestinationToronto.com that prioritizes diversified content and editorial contributors; and developed a regionally-focused content and marketing strategy during the pandemic that provided urgently needed local support and direct value to the tourism and hospitality community.
Louisville Tourism has announced the appointment of Stacey Yates to the newly created position of chief marketing officer. Yates began her tenure at the destination marketing organization in 2005 as vice president of marketing and communications, heading up the agency’s branding and positioning throughout her 17-year career with the agency. Prior to joining Louisville Tourism, Yates served as the Kentucky Derby Festival’s primary spokesperson, maintaining press contact with more than 600 media representatives annually and overseeing the Festival’s public relations and promotional efforts. Also, Yates is a life-long Louisville resident
Dyninno Group of Companies, which operates products and services in travel, fintech, and entertainment technologies sectors globally, has announced the appointment of Gerard McEvoy as managing director of industry relations at the International Travel Network. McEvoy is a seasoned senior executive with over 25 years of experience within the airline industry, having held several leadership roles over the past twenty years with British Airways, both in the UK and the U.S.
Benjamin Maddy, a well-known figure in the tourism business in New York City, has joined the team at NYC’s Topview Sightseeing as director of business development and partnerships. Maddy has been part of the tourism scene for more than two decades, having served in managerial positions with such marquee brands as Madison Square Garden, Dave & Busters and Ripley’s Believe it or Not! Times Square.
Maddy Simpson, director of NeoLux Consulting, in partnership with Mark Meredith at Rocket Travel Marketing, will now be representing Sonoma County Tourism in the UK & Ireland. Before she started NeoLux nearly two years ago, Simpson was director of public relations worldwide for Small Luxury Hotels of the World, based in the UK.
Merlin Entertainments has announced the promotion of Martin Moli to the position of trade sales manager under the North America trade team. He has been promoted from his support role as a sales support executive. His focus will be to build backup business in the Northeast, concentrating on Madame Tussauds New York and partners and clients in New York City. Originally from Nairobi, Kenya, Moli has 15 years of experience in the hospitality/travel trade world. He graduated from Ramapo College in New Jersey, majoring in sales and marketing. Prior to joining Merlin Entertainments in 2020, he worked as a contracting coordinator for the online travel agency Flight Centre.
Xplorie a Destin, Florida-based guest experience solution for lodging providers, has announced the appointed of Tom Kenyon as vice president of B2B product marketing. Before joining Xplorie at the beginning of June, Kenyon built up more than a decade of experience in product roles for a global B2B SaaS platform, where he was responsible for defining the product vision, roadmap and features. He will now focus on overseeing the B2B arm of Xplorie’s product marketing
Visit Panama City Beach is pleased to announce the appointment of industry veteran Steve Bailey as vice president of sales. A Panama City Beach native, Bailey, who is also a licensed real estate broker, previously served as director of sales & operations for The Resort Collection of Panama City Beach. In addition to Panama City Beach, Bailey brings prior hospitality experience from locations including Destin, Florida; Jackson, Mississippi; and Birmingham, Alabama.
Mobile app company Airship has announced the appointment of Tracey Ryan O’Connor as senior vice president of global sales. O’Connor will be responsible for driving Airship’s new business globally and is a member of the company’s executive leadership team. She will report directly to CEO and President Brett Caine. O’Connor has over 20 years of experience in digital marketing, e-commerce and personalization technologies for companies such as ATG, Neustar and Oracle. Most recently, O’Connor was group vice president of commerce at Coveo, an AI-based search technology SaaS company that acquired the Qubit personalization platform.
.Heather Bagshaw has joined the team at Destination Niagara USA as its new vice president of marketing. She comes to the new post after serving for nearly ten years as director of tourism at Greene County, based in Catskill, New York. Previously, she had served as executive director of the Capital District (New York) YMCA. She also ran her own publishing company.
Industry Jobs
From SearchWide Global:
—The Springfield (MO) Convention & Visitors Bureau is searching for a president and CEO. More details here.
—Explore Sisters (Sisters, Oregon) is looking for an executive director. More details here.
—Experience Scottsdale has an opening for a national sales manager. More details here.
—Brand USA, the USA’s destination marketing organization, is recruiting for a senior vice president of integrated marketing. More details here.
—The Society for Incentive Travel Excellence has an opening for a new executive director. More details here.
—Explore Butte County in California is looking for an executive director. More details here.
—The City of Vacaville, California is searching for an executive director for its Downtown Vacaville. More details here.
—Visit Williamsburg has an opening for a chief marketing officer. More details here.
—Visit Walla Walla (“Where wine, culture and the beauty of the outdoors meet”) is searching for an executive director. More detailshere.
—The Fredericksburg (Texas) Convention and Visitors Bureau is recruiting for a new president and CEO. More details here.
—Visit Dallas has an opening for a director of the Film & Creative Industries Office. More details here.
—The Pacific County Tourism Bureau, which serves the Washington coast and Long Beach Peninsula and Pacific County, is looking for an executive director. More details here.
—Visit Vancouver WA is searching for a director of group sales. More details here.
—The Los Angeles Convention Center is recruiting for a new general manager. More details here.
—Visit Bath, in Virginia, is seeking a president and CEO. More details here.
—Discover Santa Clara™ is searching for a chief executive officer. More details here.
—Santa Monica Travel & Tourism has an opening for a new director of communications. More details here.
—Discover Santa Clara is looking for a new CEO. More details here.
—The Muncie Visitors Bureau is looking for an executive director. More details here.
—Visit Greenville SC is searching for a president and CEO. More details here.
—The Shreveport-Bossier Convention & Tourist Bureau has an opening for a vice president of marketing and communications. More details here.
—Visit Wichita is searching for a new vice president of sales. More details here.
—The Cincinnati USA Convention and Visitors Bureau is seeking a new chief financial officer. More details here.
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From LinkedIn Jobs: Known to many across the board in the travel and tourism industry, the LinkedIn list (click here) has numerous job opportunities posted. Following is a sample of some of those jobs currently listed.
—The Virginia Tourism Corporation is recruiting for an international marketing manager. More details here.
—The Colorado Tourism Office has an opening for a marketing copywriter. More details here.
—Epsilon is searching for a vice president, sales (travel and tourism, remote). More details here.
—MGM Resorts International has posted a job for the position of public relations manager (hybrid) in Las Vegas. More details here.
—Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corporation is looking for a senior director, communications. Job is based in Burbank and reports to the senior vice president, marketing & communications. More details here.
—Santa Monica Travel & Tourism has an opening for a communications manager. More details here.
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Other Openings:
—There is an opening for a senior manager of social media currently available at Visit Florida. More details here.
—The Wisconsin Department of Tourism is searching for an Industry Marketing and Partner Relations Manager. The position is headquartered at the Wisconsin Department of Tourism’s office in Madison, Wisconsin. More details here.
—Argonaut, a Noble House Hotel, has an opening for an area managing director in San Francisco. Click here for more details. —Travel Wisconsin has an opening for a visual production specialist. More details here
