Account Director, Celebrations And Special Interest Groups (Western Us & Canada)

The Account Director, Celebrations & Special Interest Groups – North America, Western USA and Canada,is responsible for developing, maintaining, and growing the Groups revenue generated by the owned Accounts within the assigned territory.

The primary responsibility of this role is to manage, nurture and further develop B2B group business for the entire Belmond portfolio from owned accounts including key Wedding and Celebrations Planners, Leisure Groups Organizers, Tour Series, Special Interest Groups, Alumni & Education, and any other non-corporate source of Groups business.

The role is responsible for implementation of strategic account management for all owned accounts and increasing the number of new active accounts through business development activities.

The role is accountable for meeting established revenue targets for every Belmond property, or regional

groups of properties, as defined in the personal KPIs.

The assigned geographic territories, market and industry segments, owned Accounts and main base location for the role might be subject to change with a 4-week notice, subject to the Company’s needs and/or variable market conditions.

MAIN DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Establish and maintain relationships with industry colleagues including tourism boards, airlines, DMCs, etc
• Work very closely with Properties’ sales and revenue management teams to drive desirable groups business into the Belmond portfolio
• Qualify all Groups leads generated by owned Accounts and conduct necessary follow through to secure new bookings that fit with the parameters of “desirable” business.
• Maintain a frequent personal contact with all property-based sales personnel to ensure product knowledge is always up to date and complete alignment of sales strategies
• Ensure timely, accurate and personalized responses to all customers enquiries
• Execute an ongoing prospecting plan, adding new active customers to the portfolio of managed Accounts
• Make full use of all selling, negotiating and closing tools to increase conversion ratio from the assigned territory and account platform
• Provide feedback and information about latest market conditions and newest trends to the direct manager
• Assist Divisional Director of Sales with the organization of annual sales series, strategic partners’ sales events, and Belmond presence to relevant trade shows
• Analyse and evaluate accounts Groups productivity (past, current and future) to ensure individual Customer targets are met
• Attend relevant industry functions and meetings to ensure the Company’s brand is properly represented
• Develop a detailed quarterly sales action plan and annual account management plan aimed at achieving and exceeding revenue generation goals in Groups sales for each Account, submit to the direct manager for approval
• Communicate all seasonal promotions for the global Belmond portfolio to support all properties achieving their budgeted revenue, especially in shoulder seasons
• Plan regular Customers educational trips to key Belmond destinations as defined in the quarterly / annual sales action plan, and escort these trips if necessary
• Establish and nurture a partnership relationship with all key contacts, decision makers, bookers and influencers within every owned Account
• Maintain a proactive role in social media and support the Corporate Marketing communications plan
• Attend and actively contribute to regular sales meetings organized by the Divisional Director of Sales, or by the London Corporate team, or by the direct manager
• Conduct product training to Customers on a regular basis to ensure Belmond remains front-of-mind at all times
• Manage negotiations for groups leads on behalf of the Properties, and be the Customers “single point of contact” through final conversion of leads into confirmed status
• Maintain a clean database of all owned accounts and contacts within, with all sales activities promptly logged into OSC
• Host customer events with select key accounts throughout the year
• Establish a close collaboration with all property sales, revenue management and reservations teams and lead all closing efforts from generated Groups leads
• Manage expenses through tight control, maintain annual costs within allocated resources
• Prepare all production, account management and other sales reports as requested by the direct manager
• Show initiative and resourcefulness in developing methods for increasing market share from the owned set of Accounts, ensuring a high level of Customer satisfaction
• Assisted by the Travel Trade Support teams, prepare quotes and detailed offers for all groups leads generated by Owned accounts
• Apply effective problem-solving methodologies to resolve issues and challenges

Salary: $115,000 - $120,000 plus quarterly and annual bonuses

Requirements

The ideal candidate will have the following:

• Able to develop, maintain and grow a set of key Wedding Planner and Leisure/Tour Operator Accounts in the luxury travel sector
• Excellent written and oral communication skills
• Established industry contacts in Western US/Canada to include Wedding Planners, Photographers, and other vendors within the specialty Weddings and Celebration Market
• Exceptional customer service skills
• Ability to prospect and identify new customers and develop an appropriate business development plan
• Confident public speaker with an ability to professionally present and promote the brand and the organization
• Minimum 5 years of experience in luxury travel sales with a successful track record
• Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent in a business or related field
• Computer literacy with a strong emphasis on Microsoft office applications including WORD, EXCEL and POWERPOINT
• Experience in developing a sales action plan aimed at establishing positive, ongoing relationships with clients that will lead to long-term and increased business for Belmond properties
• Experience in the Sales and Events side of Group business, on property and/or off

Benefits

Belmond provides a comprehensive benefits package for full-time employees including medical, dental, vision, disability, and life insurance. Employees are eligible for the majority of these plans after 60 days of full-time employment. The Company also offers a 401(k) retirement savings plan, paid vacation and holidays.