Existing board member Kate Lamont has beem appointed chairperson of Tourism Western Australia and five new members will also join the board.
Existing board member Kate Lamont has beem appointed chairperson of Tourism Western Australia and five new members will also join the board.
Ms Lamont has 20 years' experience in the wine and food industry, and has three successful restaurants. She replaces outgoing chairman Alan Mulgrew and the appoinmtent is effective from September 1.
She has served on the Australian Tourist Commission board, been chair of the Swan Valley Planning Committee for seven years, and represents WA on the Winemakers Federation of Australia's wine tourism alliance.
The additions to the board are; John Spence, Kim Bridge, Gail Reynolds-Adamson, Howard Cearns and David Mazitelli.
Mr Spence is the man behind KARMA Developments, which is establishing freehold villa resorts in Bali, Thailand, the Seychelles, Lombok.
It has also recently started pre-sales and development at a new KARMA resort at Margaret River.
Ms Reynolds-Adamson is a director of Kepa Kurl Pty Ltd, a locally-owned Aboriginal tourism company based in Esperance.
Ms Reynolds-Adamson is currently on the board of the WA Indigenous Tourism Operator's Committee and was recently appointed to the board of Indigenous Business Australia.
Tourism minister Sheila McHale said one of the other new members, Mr Cearns, also brought significant marketing expertise.
"Mr Cearns is founder and chairman of brainCELLS Creative Marketing, a founding director of the iconic Little Creatures Brewing Pty Ltd in Fremantle," she said.
Mr Mazitelli is the outgoing chair of the Australian Tourism Export Council and prior to this held senior roles within the federal government, including deputy secretary of the Department of Industry, Tourism and Resources.
The final new board member, Mr Bridge, is the principal of Kim Bridge and Associates, an indigenous-owned company which provides assistance with small business development, including tourism development.
"Mr Bridge was born and raised in the East Kimberley and is a member of Tourism WA's nature based tourism advisory committee," Ms McHale said.
"One of his areas of expertise is cross-cultural awareness facilitation and he has worked on tourism projects at Purnululu National Park, the multi-award winning Kooljaman at Cape Leveque, and Darngu Tours in Fitzroy Crossing."
The current remaining board members are; Janet Holmes a Court, Sonja Mitchell, Laurie O'Meara and Rob Gurney.
The outgoing board members are; Michael Monaghan, Anthony Quahe, David Smith and Helen Creed.
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Minister announces strong, dynamic Tourism Board
Tourism Minister Sheila McHale has welcomed five new members on to the board of Tourism Western Australia.
Ms McHale today said the new board was a strong, dynamic team with a wealth of tourism and marketing expertise.
"The board has a great mix of experience and enthusiasm and I have no doubt they will contribute greatly to the future of WA tourism," she said.
The Minister said current board member Kate Lamont would assume the role of chairperson from September 1.
"Ms Lamont has 20 years' experience in the wine and food industry, including three highly successful restaurants, two of which are in the tourism hotspots of Margaret River and the Swan Valley," Ms McHale said.
"She has served on the Australian Tourist Commission Board, been chair of the Swan Valley Planning Committee for seven years, represents WA on the Winemakers Federation of Australia's wine tourism alliance and represents hospitality and tourism interests on the State Government's skills formation taskforce."
Ms McHale said joining the board was John Spence, who had an impressive record in developing and marketing resorts in India, Southeast Asia and Australia.
"Mr Spence is the man behind KARMA Developments, which is establishing freehold villa resorts in Bali, Thailand, the Seychelles, Lombok and has recently started
pre-sales and development at its new KARMA resort at Margaret River," the Minister said.
Gail Reynolds-Adamson also joins the board - a director of Kepa Kurl Pty Ltd, a
locally-owned Aboriginal tourism company based in Esperance, which operates
eco-cultural discovery tours, an Aboriginal art gallery and gift shop and a consultancy service.
Ms Reynolds-Adamson is currently on the board of the WA Indigenous Tourism Operator's Committee (WAITOC) and was recently appointed to the board of Indigenous Business Australia, which works closely with the private sector and local community groups to foster economic independence and home ownership among indigenous Australians.
The Minister said another new member, Howard Cearns, also brought significant marketing expertise.
"Mr Cearns is founder and chairman of brainCELLS Creative Marketing, a founding director of the iconic Little Creatures Brewing Pty Ltd in Fremantle," she said.
"As well as being a former member of Tourism WA's strategic marketing committee, he has contributed his brand experience to Hope Island Resort on the Gold Coast, the Vines Resort in the Swan Valley, Rottnest Island, the West Coast Eagles and an array of wineries in Margaret River, the Great Southern, Yarra Valley and McLaren Vale regions."
Ms McHale said she was also pleased to welcome David Mazitelli, the outgoing chair of the Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC) - a peak industry body representing more than 1,150 tourism export companies throughout Australia.
"Prior to this, Mr Mazitelli held senior roles within the Federal Government, including deputy secretary of the Department of Industry, Tourism and Resources, with special responsibility for tourism," she said.
"He is on the board of the Co-operative Research Centre for Sustainable Tourism and the National Tourism and Aviation Advisory Group.
"Mr Mazitelli is now returning to live in WA and it is a real coup to have secured him for the Tourism WA Board."
Kim Bridge, who also joins the board, is the principal of Kim Bridge and Associates, an indigenous-owned company which provides assistance with small business development, including tourism development.
"Mr Bridge was born and raised in the East Kimberley and is a member of Tourism WA's nature based tourism advisory committee," Ms McHale said.
"One of his areas of expertise is cross-cultural awareness facilitation and he has worked on tourism projects at Purnululu National Park, the multi-award winning Kooljaman at Cape Leveque, and Darngu Tours in Fitzroy Crossing."
The Minister said the board members joined existing members Janet Holmes a Court, chair of Heytesbury Pty Ltd; Sonja Mitchell, CEO of Slingair; Laurie O'Meara, proprietor of Perth's Emerald Hotel and Margaret River's Emerald Colonial Lodge; and Rob Gurney, group general manager sales and distribution for Qantas.
"I would like to thank outgoing chairman Alan Mulgrew and board members
Michael Monaghan, Anthony Quahe, David Smith and Helen Creed for all they have done for our tourism industry," Ms McHale said.
