One of Scotland’s leading tourism trade bodies has unveiled three new board members who will help promote the country’s golf offering around the world. Golf Tourism Scotland, which represents members from almost every sector of the golf tourism industry, made the appointments as part of ambitious plans for the New Year.
The new board members, John Drysdale, David DeSmith, representing Machrihanish Dunes, and Donna Clark from Kingsbarns Golf Links, join the existing six-strong team of golf industry figures led by GTS chairman Lee Derrick.“It is a great pleasure to welcome aboard our new board members,” he said. “Each brings with them an extraordinary depth of knowledge of the golf tourism sector which will be invaluable as we push forward with a busy year in 2012.”
The three new board members were nominated at the recent GTS AGM ahead of the golf industry’s gala event at the GTS Gold Standard Awards. Each board member will contribute to the overall aim of raising the standards ofScotland’s golf tourism in areas of product development, marketing, training and research.
In particular, John Drysdale will be responsible for the ever-important area of fund raising. As an independent business consultant who focuses on commercial activities such as sponsorship, promotions, retail, hospitality and advertising in the sports sector, his experience will be invaluable.
The second new board member is David DeSmith; the US-based director of marketing for Southworth Development, a privately held company specialising in hospitality-branded resorts and real estate communities which runs Machrihanish Dunes. Crucially one of his current responsibilities at Southworth is developing marketing strategies and programmes for the company’s many worldwide properties and enterprises.
Donna Clark is the business development manager at Kingsbarns Golf Links. She manages all marketing activity, website development and social media as well as representing Kingsbarns at both national and international trade and consumer shows. She also represents the award-winning links course on the St Andrews Golf Development Group – a destination marketing group comprising the 11 courses in and aroundSt Andrews.
“With strong commercial and marketing backgrounds, along with their international experience, Donna, David and John will play a central role in our plans to promote Scottish golf around the globe and attract more visitors to the Home of Golf,” said Derrick. “More than ever,Scotlandneeds to be seen as a realistic and desirable destination for all golfers in theUK,Europeand beyond. Our aim for 2012 is to champion this message to new and existing markets, and our new board members will be pivotal in achieving this.”
Golf Tourism Scotlandwww.golftourismscotland.com