Experienced international tourism specialist joins Visit Sunshine Coast

Visit Sunshine Coast (VSC) has appointed highly experienced tourism sales and marketing professional, Rachel Meyer, as the group’s International and Domestic Trade Manager.

Meyer, who will start with the Regional Tourism Organisation in February, brings with her over two decades of experience in the international tourism sphere, along with extensive local knowledge.

With a strong background in Japanese inbound tourism (with groups such as Kintetsu and Japan Airlines), Meyer has also worked with major airlines (Virgin Blue), tourism organisations (Tourism NSW) and hotel companies (Peppers Retreats & Resorts).

Meyer has been based on the Sunshine Coast for the past 10 years, where she has operated her own tourism sales and marketing company, Motion Marketing, which has provided consultancy services for a range of Queensland tourism businesses, including Sunshine Coast Destination and Australia’s Nature Coast. In addition, she has been a lecturer and tutor in the Faculty of Arts & Business (Tourism, Leisure & Event Management) at the University of the Sunshine Coast since 2012.

With extensive experience and contacts in the inbound travel sector, Meyer will be responsible for growing the Sunshine Coast’s international travel business.

The region has enjoyed strong growth from Europe, the UK, America and New Zealand over the past year, recording a 4.5% increase in overseas visitors (to 256,000) for the year ending September 2015, with the USA market growing 20.9% and the UK 17.3%.

Welcoming Meyer’s appointment, VSC Chief Executive Simon Ambrose said that she would build on the good work achieved by Jan Foletta over the past three years, and her experience in emerging Asian markets would be a particular benefit.

Ambrose stated “the Sunshine Coast and its partnership in Australia’s Nature Coast has been very well received in European markets, and the high profile of Bindi Irwin after her success in Dancing with the Stars has put the region up in lights in the North American market, but we believe that Asia is still relatively untapped, so Rachel will work to increase our share of this rapidly growing market.

“Rachel knows the Sunshine Coast very well and has been actively involved in its development as a multi-faceted and highly attractive destination, so we expect her to fit into the organisation very seamlessly.

“I’d like to thank Jan Foletta for her tremendous work, especially in developing the Australia’s Nature Coast concept, and we wish her very well in her future tourism endeavours.”

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