Roger Dow has won a prestigious WTM 2014 World Travel Leaders Award in recognition of his achievements over the past 10 years as CEO of US Travel, the private industry association set up to promote and encourage inbound travel to the United States.
Dow received the coveted award today. Collecting the award on his behalf was Vice President of Business Development and General Manager of IPW, Malcolm Smith and was presented by Travel Weekly US, International Advertising Director, Hazel Lyons at the WTM World Travel Leaders Awards.
The Awards give WTM’s Official Media Partners – which represent key travel industry media around the world – an excellent platform to congratulate and recognise those companies and individuals that have made substantial contributions to travel and tourism.
Three nominations from each of WTM’s media partners were judged in September by a panel of three, including an independent body, a representative of WTM and the relevant media partner.
When Dow joined US Travel 10 years ago, he encountered difficulty in securing meetings with senators and congressmen and began urging the industry to speak with one voice in order to increase its effectiveness.
Since then, US Travel helped create the US’ first tourist board, Brand USA, which launched at WTM in 2001; persuaded the State Department to reform the lengthy visa process for visitors to the US and, through skilful presentation of research and the benefits of the industry, the organisation was instrumental in getting President Obama to declare travel and tourism to be a national “strategic priority” due to its growing of import revenues and job creation.
Reed Travel Exhibitions, Senior Director, World Travel Market, Simon Press said: “Roger has touched across all segments of the industry and now has the corridors of Capital Hill listening to him on travel industry matters. Through his determination, Roger has changed the face of US Travel to become a uniting political voice of the industry.”
Every year, World Travel Leaders Awards are presented at WTM. The full list of 2014 winners is:
Brazil: Eduardo Nascimento, President of Nascimento Turismo Operadora
China: James Liang, Chairman and CEO of Ctrip.com
India: Jehangir Katgara, Chairman & Managing Director of TBI Trail Blazer Tours India Private Limited
Italy: Venetian Villas
Portugal: André Jordan, Founder of the André Jordan Group
Russia: Association of Tour Operators
Spain: Turespaña
Travolution/technology: David Speakman, Chairman, Travel Counsellors
UK: EasyJet
Middle East: The Gulf Hotel Bahrain
USA: Roger Dow, CEO, US Travel
Canada: Air Canada
– ENDS –
About World Travel Market
World Travel Market, the leading global event for the travel industry, is the must-attend four-day business-to-business exhibition for the worldwide travel and tourism industry.
More than 50,000 senior travel industry professionals, government ministers and international press, embark on ExCeL – London every November to network, negotiate and discover the latest industry opinion and trends at WTM.
WTM, now in its 35th year, is the event where the travel industry conducts and concludes its deals.
WTM 2013 generated more than £2 billion of travel industry contracts, revealed independent research by Fusion Communications.
WTM is owned by the world’s leading events organiser Reed Exhibitions (RE), which organises a other portfolio’s of travel industry events including IBTM Events, the world’s leading showcases for the meetings and events industry and International Luxury Travel Market events.
In 2013, RE held more than 500 events in 40 countries bringing together more than six million people from around the world generating billions of dollars in business.
Reed Exhibitions
Reed Travel Exhibitions (RTE) is the world’s leading provider of exhibitions in the travel and tourism industry, with a wide-ranging portfolio of 21 international events in 14 countries throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Asia Pacific and Africa.
Its market-leading, business-to-business events cover all elements of travel and tourism, including leisure travel, luxury travel, meetings, events, incentives and business travel, as well as golf, ski and spa travel.
RTE is part of Reed Exhibitions.
www.reedtravelexhibitions.com