IPW 2021 Launches June 1st! … Online
What is this all about? For those already signed up for IPW next May in Las Vegas, be prepared for an e-mail this week from the U.S. Travel Association, which operates IPW, with details on the launch June 1-3 of the event’s online marketplace—the digital version of the most important trade show on the business calendar for the USA’s international inbound tour and travel industry.
Malcolm Smith, US Travel’s senior vice president of business development & general manager, IPW, told INBOUND in an interview that the digital IPW provides IPW exhibitors and buyers with the opportunity to use the online platform to leverage the tools available at the online marketplace and better prepare them for doing business when the real-time IPW takes place May 10-14 next year in Las Vegas. (IPW 2020, originally scheduled for this May 30-June 3 2020, was cancelled due to the coronavirus-driven global pandemic.)
The online IPW marketplace will “serve as a magnet for the whole year,” he said, while lauding the decision by Chicago, which was originally going to be the venue to IPW 2021, to re-schedule its own tour as host for June 27-July 1, 2025.
Concept is actually a decade old: Explained Smith: “This actually started back in 2010 with the media. You had a press room with more paper than anyone wanted to deal with and journalists carrying all that collateral back with them. So, we developed an online press room. And that was started primarily for the PR people so that press releases, press trip information, story ideas could be uploaded. And you can use it, also, to upload videos—so that all the journalists who receive a lot of material during the show, after the show could go and access it, download it and have it right there. No matter where they are in the world.”
Above: A page from the IPW Press Room Site
Also, Look for the IPW Daily: In addition to the IPW online marketplace this weekend, on Saturday June 1st, exhibitors and buyers will also be able to read the latest on what to expect at the online marketplace from the IPW Daily preview issue for IPW 2021. Additional issues of the publication will appear later this year and next, prior to the next “real-time” and live event in Las Vegas.
Asked if the experience of using online market digital tools might detract from the one-on-one personal experience IPW delegates derive by attending the live event, Smith was quick to tell us that he did not think so, pointing out that the online platform will enable both to ramp up their interest so that they can better use the time they have during one-on-one business appointments and at social functions.
And IPW be bigger and better as a result of the digital tools now available to delegates, as well as the physical facility that will be the venue for the event. IPW 2021 will be among the first large shows to use the new West Hall at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Slated for completion by December 2020, the West Hall will provide 600,000 square feet of convention space, 150,000 square feet of meeting spaced rooms for a total campus exhibition space of 2.5 million square feet.
Overseas Arrivals Down 99.6% Last Month
Overseas Traffic Effectively Stops in April: For some of us in the U.S. inbound tour and travel industry, it seemed that, last month, following the posting of overseas arrivals number for the March 2020, it simply could not go on like this. It didn’t. It got worse. Statistically speaking, no one from abroad came to the USA last month. And with no route openings or additions of note, the situation won’t improve much once the visitor count for May is tallied and posted.
So, as you review the following tables furnished by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO), which detail overseas arrivals to the United States from world regions and key country markets, please realize that the numbers are real. And as we cope with, and respond to, the coronavirus-driven global pandemic, let us all stay safe and look forward.
Understanding the Impact of COVID-19
All along Brand USA has been working toward “Re-entry and Recovery.” Brand USA is making it known that it is not just waiting to get the coronavirus-driven global pandemic behind us. It is working to have programs ready-to-launch once it is safe to do so. Addressing hundreds who attended a webinar session—COVID-19 Research Update—that featured Carroll Rheem, Brand USA’s vice president, research and analytics.
As he introduced Rheem, Brand USA president and CEO Chris Thompson said, “We are building specific and measurable and actionable and relevant and time-bound marketing tools that, when the time is appropriate, when we get clearance from our health experts and our public officials, we can start looking at re-entry and recovery. When that will actually happen, when that time will come is open to conversation and discussion.”
At the webinar, which took place just after the publication of the last issue of INBOUND, Rheem focused on an analysis of COVID -19 and how key source markets for inbound tourism at dealing with it; and the statistical portrait of how the tour and travel industry is faring midst the near total shutdown of international travel
“A lot of things have changed over the past few months,” Rheem said, referring to the period from mid-March to mid-May. And though the number of virus cases is nearing 5 million, she added, “what we can see in recent weeks is the beginning sign of a downward trend. Still, with 20,000 or more new cases a day since the beginning of April … (we are) still very much in the thick of battle.”
At the time of Rheem’s presentation, Brazil had begun to experience a steep increase in new active cases of COVID-19. Rheem showed the following char, which suggested that the UK and Canada seemed to have “flattened the curve” in the rate at which new cases of the coronavirus have been increasing, while China, South Korea, Japan, France, Germany and Australia.
Current Conditions Relative to Initial Peak
Selected Key Markets
Expect a Tradeoff: Rheem walked viewers through a number of instances in which governments, health care experts and travelers will be engaging in tradeoffs between factors such convenience, effectiveness, cost and personal privacy (For instance: Will people consent to having their cellphone movements and location tracked?) and other situations. And the tradeoff “is something that everyone is going to have to grapple with.”
In the big picture for inbound traffic to USA—Europe Suffers Most: Brand USA last year embraced a different strategic course by treating Europe as a single market. As such, it comprises the Number 3 source of international visitors to the USA, behind only Canada and Mexico. And as a spending market, it is Number 1, generating $53 billion in spend vs. a $35 billion from Chinese visitors to the U.S. The next two tables give some dimension to Europe’s position.
Whether it’s uncertainty or a lack of financial resources—why people aren’t traveling internationally.
Women are less likely than men to travel internationally.
If there are children in the household, its occupants will be less likely to travel.
The next two charts suggest that seniors, as well as those who are a part of the key 45-54-year-old demographic, will be less likely to travel internationally.
Following is what it’s going to take to create an environment for international travel.
Because a number of the charts and tables used by Carroll Rheem in her presentation had so much statistical information, we were unable to use it here, as colors and their resolution were difficult to pick up and some of the data were/are too small to be easily read on a cellphone screen. Be sure to visit here (ctrl + click) for the presentation and its more than 50 charts, tables and graphs and images.
The UK’s Top 50 Tour Operators—Updated
TUI remains at the top of the list. The UK’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has completed and posted its list of ATOL (Air Travel Organizers’ License) for the next half year, providing the tour and travel industry with our de facto list of the country’s tour operators, .And, as was the case for the past several years, TUI leads all on the basis of ATOLs for passengers for the next 12 months.
A couple of other points of note: the disappearance of Thomas Cook, which went out of business last September; the decline of Virgin Holidays, which slipped from No. 11 to No. 20 since the previous ATOL list was posted last October; and the appearance of easyjet Holidays (it handles packaged product, while easyjet Airline Company, a separate ATOL holder, covers third-party product sold via its website) which was re-launched last fall in the wake of the shutdown of Thomas Cook.
The new list was to have been ready by the beginning of April, but the CAA gave operators an extension due to the havoc created by the COVIN-19 global pandemic. It is unclear if the country’s tour operator sector grasped the full impact of the pandemic at the time they filed for their ATOLs, or whether the CAA accounted for it, either.
A Note: The Air Travel Organizers’ Licensing is a CAA program developed to give financial protection to people who have purchased package holidays and flights from a member tour operator. An ATOL licensed tour operator must obtain insurance bonds from the CAA so that the latter is able to provide refunds to travelers affected by any event which causes an airline to be unable to provide travel for its customers, and to arrange for flights (in addition to accommodation and other items which may be included in a package holiday) to return home those already abroad at the time. According to published reports, last year’s failure of Thomas Cook has resulted in some 340,000 claims, valued at almost £350 million (nearly $425 million) from the ATOL program.
The list of the UK’s Top 50 Tour Operators, based on ATOL-authorized passenger levels, follows.
The China Profile—Before COVID-19
In its recent postings of country market profiles, the U.S. National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO) tells us that, even absent a COVID-19 global pandemic, the once-overheated Chinese Market was about to/certain to, stay cold for another year. NTTO’s most recent long term forecast for key international markets forecast projected a total of 2,871 visits from China to the United States. Statistically, this is about the same as what it was for 2019 (2,830 visits).
Beyond the impact of the global pandemic on travel between the U.S. and China, analysts and observers were already advising clients in the U.S. that other obstacles stood in the way of a growth, such as the number of rejections of applications to travel to the United States and the on-again off-again “trade war” between China and the U.S.
In the Meantime: If one can get beyond the type of mental bloc that the obstacles above present, a cursory review of some of the key data in the China Market Profile reveals such points as these:
—The share of the overall number of Chinese visiting New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco declined from 77.7 percent of the overall total in 2015 to 60.9 percent last year.
—About two out of every five Chinese travelers to the USA like to visit U.S. National Parks.
—For nearly two-thirds (65 percent) of Chinese travelers, the purpose of their trip is to take a vacation or holiday, or to visit friends and relatives.
Some other highlights of NTTO’s China Market Profile are in the tables below.
Notes on NTTO material: Only country and world region destinations having a sample size consistently of 100 or more are displayed. Visitation incidence was rounded to two decimal places in NTTO source files beginning in 2014 to reduce artificial ‘jumpiness’ in the data caused by rounding to only one decimal places, especially for destinations having incidence of less than two percentage points. Due to quarterly data weighting by country and port of entry, some unreported destinations may have a higher proportion of total than those reported.
For additional information, visit https://travel.trade.gov/
Seven out of Ten Europeans Would Still Travel Abroad this Year
Not necessarily outbound to USA, It’s Still Reassuring to U.S. Industry: While it is encouraging to suggest that, given the opportunity, Europeans “would if they could” travel abroad, the focus of some new survey findings is more about travel by Europeans within Europe (which is also the largest overseas regional source market for travel to the USA). The findings of the recent survey, conducted for LuggageHero,* show that most Europeans are ready to travel—this year if they could. According to the survey results:
—20 percent of European respondents are waiting until 2021 to travel abroad and an extra 6 percent said they will wait for a vaccine before leaving the country.
—A surprising 60 percent of number of those who would typically travel for business said they still expect to have at least one business trip in 2020.
—60 percent said their 2020 travel budgets will be the same as before the pandemic or just slightly lower, compared with 51 percent in April.
—Twenty-six percent of Europeans will wait until the next year or for a vaccine to travel abroad. Almost half of the survey participants would like to go to another country before September if quarantine restrictions are lifted, while 26 percent will wait until next year, with 6 percent of those people said that would be only on the condition that a vaccine has been made available. These numbers represent a 23 percent rise in willingness to travel abroad in 2020 compared the same survey conducted in April. the European respondents.
—Three out of four (75 percent) of Europeans will have a road trip or a city break inside their own country.
—More than half of European respondents are planning to travel inside the country in the summer months, and another 20 percent are so eager to travel they will hit the road within the first 15 days after restrictions are lifted. At the same time, 3 percent said they would not leave their own city until a vaccine is available. A similar group of 3 percent say they will wait for the economy to return to normal before leaving their city.
—While online meetings have become routine in the last two months, people still value face-to-face interactions, especially when it comes to professional business matters. Only 17 percent of survey respondents said they have adapted to the efficiency of the online meetings, and—against all odds—60 percent believe they will have at least one business trip by the end of 2020.
—More than three-quarters of survey respondents said the financial impact to their household was relatively small, from 0 to 25 percent. However, 11 percent said that since the pandemic started, their monthly household income has dropped by more than 50 percent.
—Forty-two percent (this is up six percent from the previous month) said they expect to spend the same amount as planned earlier, and 18 percent will decrease their budget by only 0-20 percent. Comparatively, the same survey in April showed that 36 percent would stick to the same travel budget for this year, while projected decreases in spending were slightly lower. Perhaps travelers found some financial solutions or were feeling more fearful in the first phases of the quarantine.
*LuggageHero is a short-term luggage storage provider in 40 European and North American cities. The customer survey was conducted from May 10-14, 2020, via online forms and ensured gender and age balance, as well as geographical representation.
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Meanwhile, back in the USA, a survey of the active members of the United States Tour Operators Association (USTOA) about post-COVID 19 plans for recovery and resumption of business showed that:
—More than half (57 percent) of active member respondents reported that business on the books for 2021 is rebooked guests from cancelled 2020 departures. One third (32 percent) of active member business for 2021 is comprised of existing reservations made prior to the coronavirus outbreak, and 11 percent represents new reservations made in 2020.
—Eighty percent of current active member traveler bookings are to international destinations, the remaining 20 percent of traveler bookings are to North America (U.S., Canada and Mexico).
—A quarter (26 percent) of tour operators foresee restarting operations in September 2020, while an equal number (26 percent) anticipate returning to the region in the first quarter of 2021.
The survey was completed on May 11, with a 56 percent response rate of active member brands.
Tour Operators Talk Travel to USA
Confidence in Their Safety is Important to Overseas Visitors: As part of Connect Travel’s ongoing “Staying Connected—Virtual Roundtable Series,” Shari Bailey, vice president, Connect Travel, and general manager, Connect Travel Events recently took part with Elvi Cal, vice president product development, TravelBrands Inc., a large Canadian operator that includes several major brands; and Dutch tour operator Wolfgang Hendrix, CEO, Wolf Consultancy BV in a busy webinar attended by more than 200 tour and travel industry professionals. The panel dealt with questions that ranged from what will the cost be of new safety protocols of a post-COVID-19 travel environment to the Visit USA travel experience … to the what they saw as the prospects for travel to the USA in the near- and long-term future.
Bailey, the panel moderator, summed up the panel’s key discussion points in the following Five Key Takeways:
| 1. A Matter of Trust: The only way to improve consumer sentiment is through confidence. Confidence in their safety when traveling, the cleanliness of products and destinations, and the tour operators with whom they travel. Tour operators need you to share any safety messages including social distancing regularly so they can include your destinations, hotels and activities in their communications. 2. Safe. Clean. Open. Tour operators are focusing on keeping customers abreast of new regulations and safety protocols. As each state and/or city may differ, a standard, consistent message updating your partners on new directives, openings, and safe and clean strategies are needed. 3. Patterns Will Change: Tour operators predict their clients will stay closer to home initially. All properties with a safe and clean strategy will fare better but smaller, boutique hotels seem to have an edge over mega properties or rental homes. Fly/drive travel and road trips allowing for more experiential travel over large tours could be preferred. 4. Be Authentic: The way you tell your story could be more important than the story itself. Tour operators want honest and real messaging. Be unique and share local secrets and destination updates. When doing this in an authentic way – that is true to your brand – you will build their trust in you, your product or destination, and ultimately their end consumer. 5. Connect and Communicate: Communicating with your airports, partners, colleagues and competitors has never been more crucial. Develop messaging to make visitors feel safe and welcome, and partner with your local, regional and state tourism offices to distribute. |
Click here in order to listen to or view the webinar.
A Conversation with Jonathan Elkoubi
A familiar figure in the NYC area tour and travel industry, Jonathan Elkoubi moved quickly as soon as the coronavirus-driven pandemic leveled the industry in America’s most popular destination. He didn’t retreat. Instead, he put together and launched a website, https://htta.us/ (for Hospitality-Tourism-Travel-and-Activities Recovery Registry), a “continuously evolving platform dedicated to the long-term recovery of unemployed and furloughed peers.” Within two days after its launch last month, there were several hundred registrations, along with support from several trade associations.
Impressed at the support that HTTA has attracted, we decided to talk with Elkoubi about what brought him to the USA and asked a series of questions about what HTTA is doing.
What brought him to the United States? He explains it thus: “Following a 1-year work assignment on the island of Cyprus, I arrived in New York City in July 2004 for what should have been a 2 months’ vacation. It turned into nearly 16 years and counting. My first job in the U.S: general manager of a small business which specialized in First Response Equipment consultation and sales. It is ironic that I was then an expert in business continuity best practices, one of the largest regional distributors of PPE at the time.
Early 2008, I was having lunch with my friend Mehmet Selcuker, who owns a receptive tour operator company (Bonjour USA Tours).”
“We started brainstorming ideas regarding how to elegantly approach his Fuel Surcharge conundrum as oil was reaching $100+ a barrel, impacting charter bus rates unexpectedly. He liked my approach and offered a position in his company which I eventually accepted. You can say I started my official journey in the world of tourism with a baptism by fire: the 2008/2009 economic downturn. Despite this challenge and the ones that would follow every few years, I fell in love with this industry, its people, and the values of tourism. Tourism provides access to an open dynamic world of positivity, personal improvement and it satiates the infinite curiosity of mankind. Since then, I have held a few different positions in the industry, and had just started a new venture (VisitorTix), with my client and friend Bruce Amick, when this new crisis exploded.”
The conversation continued …
INBOUND: About a month ago you announced the launch of HTTA.US. Can you give me a brief overview of what HTTA is?
Elkoubi: HTTA stands for U.S. “Hospitality, Tourism, Travel and Activities” Recovery Registry. This non-profit initiative is about simplifying the connections which could help the unemployed and furloughed of our industry get back on their feet faster: connecting them to representative Trade Association and DMO leadership, to relevant educational/information resources, to mentors and volunteering opportunities, to temporary gigs and finally, connecting them to upcoming job opportunities within our sector.
INBOUND: So, if I lost my job—was laid off or furloughed—why do you recommend I register at htta.us?
Elkoubi: The latest numbers from the U.S. Travel Association are staggering: over 50 percent of the workforce that constituted Travel is now unemployed. HTTA is here to source the most important information and facilitate the most relevant connections those wanting to remain a part of this industry are going to need. It is also taking into consideration another reality: impacted individuals are simply not going to wait on the sidelines and will use their transferable skills to migrate to other industries, wherever jobs are available. HTTA is here for the long run, helping to make sure that the talent pool remains available once recovery is underway and our industry is capable again of absorbing this amazing workforce.
INBOUND: To make sure I understand it right, HTTA will help me stay connected with the travel and tourism industry and help find a job?
Elkoubi: Correct. One step at the time, we are turning HTTA into a one-stop-shop: relevant information depository, connection facilitator with the industry’s institutions, and a pathway to future gigs and job listings specifically for our sector of activity. Currently, the first piece of this puzzle—connecting people to trade associations and DMOs—is live and working, and we are working at completing the other pieces of the puzzle as fast as we can.
INBOUND: What have you learned in the month since you launched?
Elkoubi: Many interesting takeaways from our first month: the industry is even more fragmented than expected, making our mission more difficult to fulfill. Because we are positioning ourselves with the long term in mind, some people are also disappointed that we cannot help them drastically right away.
INBOUND: We saw it on the HTTA website that several organizations have endorsed the initiative. Why did they decide to endorse HTTA?
Elkoubi: The life of associations and DMOs depends completely on the perennial support of past, present, and future members. By offering a tool allowing organizations to provide guidance and leadership to those individuals who specifically listed them when registering, they can prove their worth for their members of tomorrow. There is also a backend component to HTTA: the value of the aggregate anonymized data, which we intend to share, can help entities shape their long-term response to the cycle of crises. We also happen to be an “open” platform, very willing to incorporate suggestions, recommendations, and resources we receive from endorsing entities.
INBOUND: What kind of support are you looking for now?
Elkoubi: The most urgent type of support: propagation – as time goes by and more businesses lose their survival battle, it will become increasingly difficult to reach and register impacted unemployed individuals. We certainly could also use some volunteers and sponsorship money, although we decided to put these on the backburner for now.
INBOUND: HTTA is a joint initiative put to life by competitors. Why?
Elkoubi: Until receiving our first endorsements, HTTA had to prove it was a credible and neutral initiative, with no hidden agenda. And what better way to show a heightened degree of checks and balances than splitting the responsibilities and management of this initiative between two competing businesses (VisitorTix.com and Places.Events)? In all fairness, Marina Petrova, the managing founder of Places.Events, is an amazingly talented marketer and project manager; HTTA would not have seen the light of day without her equal commitment to HTTAs mission. Maybe the story of HTTA’s creation can inspire other companies, associations and DMOs to join forces in a similar way in order to speed up recovery efforts and circumvent fragmentation.
INBOUND: Everyone is talking about this, but I need to ask you. What is your forecast for the tourism industry?
Elkoubi: If things are left in their current state, catastrophic at best, cataclysmic at worst. But it is my profound belief that we can gain back control of our industry’s destiny and beat all projections and predictions if only we are willing to collectively innovate, cooperate and collaborate.
INBOUND: Thank you, your HTTA idea is amazing. Last question—what is your recommendation to the industry peers?
Elkoubi: Do not give in to despair, do not accept that there are no remedies and be ready to remain committed, contribute and witness the resurgence of Travel.
Industry Recognizes World’s Top Travel Buyers
The U.S. Travel Association and Brand USA have named 57 of the world’s highest-volume tour operators and buyers of U.S. travel as recipients of the annual Chairman’s Circle Honors awards. The awards are typically bestowed at a ceremony—co-hosted by Brand USA—during U.S. Travel’s annual IPW trade show; however, this year’s awards will be delivered by virtual commendation from U.S. Travel President and CEO Roger Dow and Brand USA President and CEO Christopher L. Thompson.
IPW 2020, which was scheduled to begin in Las Vegas on May 30, was cancelled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Honorees are recognized for their significant inbound travel contributions to the U.S. from their respective markets. Nominations are based on a combination of factors such as customer volume, revenues and unique marketing campaigns promoting America to travelers around the globe. U.S. Travel’s Chairman’s Circle-level members, including top U.S. travel businesses and destinations, nominated the honorees.
“Our honorees’ efforts to bring the world to America have never been more valuable,” said Dow. “When the time is right, these organizations will be critical to bringing back the visitors who will help fuel America’s economic recovery efforts. I am deeply grateful for all they have done to make the U.S. the greatest travel destination in the world, and all of the good work that I know is yet to come.”
“While we can’t be together, it’s important we take time to recognize our honorees for their invaluable, individual contributions to our collective successes,” said Thompson. “This year’s honorees help Brand USA showcase the hidden gems of U.S. destinations and experiences from cultural heritage and culinary, art and music to outdoor festivals, as well as unique aspects of our cities and states.”
The 57 organizations recognized in the 2020 Chairman’s Circle Honors awards hail from 19 countries. Following is the listing of the 2020 Chairman’s Circle honorees.
HODGE PODGE: Changes & Appointments
Gregg Caren has been appointed president and CEO of the Philadelphia Convention and Visitor Bureau. He will be succeeding Julie Coker, who is moving to San Diego to become president and CEO of the San Diego Tourism Authority. Caren most recently served for more than a dozen years as executive vice president, sales and strategic business development for ASM Global (formerly SMG), operator of over 350 venues worldwide, headquartered in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania. He also served in various senior leadership. Caren has more than three decades of industry experience and will join the bureau on June 8, 2020.
In a series of changes and promotions, the Walt Disney Company has announced a series of changes and promotions, with one of particular interest to the travel trade: Thomas Mazloum , who becomes president of Disney Signature Experiences, which include the tour organizer Adventures by Disney, Disney Cruise Line and the shared vacation company Disney Vacation Club. Mazloum joined the Disney operation three years ago from Crystal Cruise Line, where he spent 15 years, lastly as chief operating officer. Previously he spent two years with Walt Disney World Resort/Epcot as general manager-food & beverage and special events. Mazloum succeeds Jeff Vahle, who has moved on to the position of president of Walt Disney World Resort.
In the wake of a major reorganization at CVC, the largest tour operator/travel agency in Brazil, Fernando Souza Oliveira, executive director of planning, revenue management and new business, has stepped down from the company after nearly 10 years. A CVC statement said “The company thanks Mr. Fernando Souza Oliveira for his dedication and wishes success on the new journey.”
Kevin Mayer, the executive who led Disney’s streaming efforts, is leaving the company to become the CEO of TikTok. Mayer is making the move after, some published accounts say, he was widely viewed as being passed over for the top job at Disney earlier this year. Mayer will be the CEO of the short-form video app as well as the chief operating officer of ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company. Mayer was the chairman of Disney’s direct-to-consumer division since its founding in 2018. His departure came after he wasn’t selected to replace Bob Iger as Disney’s CEO earlier this year. That job ultimately went to Bob Chapek, who served as chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products.
Jennifer Sullivan has been named director, Mid-Atlantic Regional Office for the Nashville Convention and Visitors Corporation, serving as an in-market representative for Washington, D.C.-based clients. She joins the organization from Destination Cleveland, were she was regional sales and business development manager. Previously, she was senior national sales manager for Baltimore, Maryland.
Royce Chwin has been selected as president and CEO of Tourism Vancouver, one of Canada’s oldest DMOs. Chwin joins Tourism Vancouver from Travel Alberta, where he had been CEO of the provincial crown corporation responsible for marketing Alberta worldwide. Chwin was appointed president and CEO of the organization in 2014. Previously, he was Travel Alberta’s chief marketing officer. He joined the organization in 2010 as managing director, global marketing and brand strategy. Chwin also worked at the Canadian Tourism Commission for several years.
Just days before Hertz filed for bankruptcy, the company announced that former Cabela’s executive Paul Stone will take over as president and CEO. The move followed the resignation of Kathryn V. Marinello. The company said Marinello will stay on for up to a year as a consultant to ensure a smooth transition. In April, Hertz laid off some 10,000 employees not long after the impact of the corona virus-driven global pandemic began to lay waste to major sectors of the U.S. tour and travel industry. Stone joined Hertz in March 2018 to lead the company’s North American car rental operations. Previously, he held senior management positions at Cabela’s, Walmart and Sam’s Club.
Kevin Rabbitt has been appointed CEO of the Hornblower Group, a globally known company in the small passenger vessel business. Rabbitt is expected to take up the role in July, while founder, chairman and current CEO Terry MacRae will continue as executive chairman. A member of the Hornblower board since 2018, Rabbitt joins from NEP Group, a global provider of tele-production services for major events, where he has been CEO since 2012. Under his leadership, the company expanded its operations from two to 24 countries. A native of Kansas City, Rabbitt has had a career stretching two decades, including tenures at the management consultant firm Bain & Co, and Las Vegas-based Global Experience Specialists, a leading producer of face-to-face events and expositions.
Posted Industry Jobs
From SearchWide Global:
—Travel Marquette is looking for a group marketing/sales manager. For more information, visit here.
—Meet AC (Atlantic City) is seeking a new to find their next President & CEO. Click here for more details.
—The Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau has an opening for a senior national accounts director in Washington, D.C. Click here for more details.
—Visit Topeka has an opening for a new president, who will also serve as senior vice president of the Greater Topeka Partnership. You’ll find more details here.
—Visit Santa Clara is searching for a president and CEO. Click here for more information.
—Destination Ann Arbor is looking to hire a vice president of sales. For more information, visit here.
—The Port Aransas & Mustang Island Tourism Bureau & Chamber of Commerce is searching for a president & CEO. For more information, click here.
—The Galesburg Area Convention and Visitors Bureau in Illinois is looking for an executive director. For more details, click here.
—The Spartanburg (S.C.) Convention & Visitors Bureau is seeking a chief tourism development officer. Visit here for more information.
—Discover Lancaster is searching for a new president and EO. Click here for more details.
—The St. Louis Convention & Visitors Commission (Explore St. Louis) has an opening for a vice president of sales. Click here for more information
—An international hotels & resorts company has an opening for a regional director of sales and marketing; the position is based in Vancouver, B.C. Visit here for details —The Saugatuck Douglas Area Convention & Visitors Bureau is searching for a new executive director. Click here for more information
