WHY IT RATES: The industry veteran's appointment represents the next stage in the cruise line's efforts to bolster its trade partnerships—Patrick Clarke, TravelPulse Senior Writer

Celestyal Cruises is delighted to announce the appointment of Gordon Dirker as Vice President, Business Development—North America.

Mr. Dirker began working for us on January 2, 2018. He is responsible for all North American field sales activities, reporting to Leslie Peden, President, Celestyal Cruises Inc.

Mr. Dirker is an experienced sales professional with 21 years of senior-level success in leisure, travel and tourism, both B2B and B2C, with a skill set comprising C-level negotiations, tour operations, expedition cruising and Customer Relationship Management (CRM). Throughout his career, he has cultivated strong relationships and is well-respected in the industry.

From 2014 until 2017, Mr. Dirker was Vice President, Americas at Hurtigruten, Inc., an international expedition cruise line based in Oslo, Norway and the owner and operator of 15 small to medium-sized cruise vessels.

While at Hurtigruten, Mr. Dirker drove growth throughout the America’s B2B and B2B2C distribution channels and reported directly to the Global Vice President of Sales in Oslo. He in-sourced and established Hurtigruten’s sales operation in Seattle, increased sales by 68 percent and signed newly-preferred distribution partnerships with key North American consortia.

Prior to Hurtigruten, Mr. Dirker was the Director of Sales at Brendan Vacations (part of Travel Corporation), where he managed the company’s national sales efforts. During his tenure there, Mr. Dirker developed additional distribution channels and bolstered existing partnerships, which increased market share for the company.

All Celestyal Cruises Business Development Managers in North America now report to Mr. Dirker. He is responsible for sales development in California, Oregon and Washington, in addition to nationwide team management responsibilities.

"The appointment of Mr. Dirker signals the next stage in building and investing in our trade partnerships, which includes the addition of a further three Business Development Managers and the creation of a new Marketing Executive role for North America," said Leslie Peden, President – Celestyal Cruises, Inc. "We are thrilled to have Mr. Dirker on board and look forward to his success."

SOURCE: Celestyal Cruises press release.