Leading Scottish tourism entreprenaur appointed to Liverpool’s tourism cheif
Alison McRae, 39, will take up the post of Director of Destination Liverpool in the middle of November to oversee the city region’s £1.3 bn visitor economy sector and build on the city’s success as European Capital of Culture.
Alison, who has a 17-year successful track record in tourism and economic development, will also act as an external champion and spokesman for the Council and the sector at a local, regional, national and international level.
The Glasgow-born entrepreneur’s main task is to ensure that Liverpool’s visitor and cultural economy is at the heart of the city’s economic and regeneration agenda and to work in tandem with key public and private sector partners including major asset holders in the City Centre. Alison will also co-ordinate strategy with Liverpool Vision, The Mersey Partnership, Tourism Directors in neighbouring local authorities, Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) and Visit Britain.
Liverpool has undergone a £4bn transformation over the past 10 years including the creation of a new cruise liner facility, a new canal link, a new arena and conference centre and the new Liverpool One retail and leisure development while the number of hotel beds in the city has doubled in that time to over 5,000.
Previously Alison worked with Scottish Enterprise and as Project Director for the Scottish Government initiative “Homecoming Scotland” where she designed the vision and strategy for this year long programme of events and activities which is running this year to drive tourism growth.
Alison, who has a masters degree in architecture at Trinity College, Cambridge and attended Harvard Business School before setting up project management consultancy firm Blue Toucan, said she was excited by the opportunities and challenges of the new position.
Alison commented: ‘’Liverpool has developed a fantastic reputation as a must see destination following the phenomenal success of its year as European Capital of Culture. The city’s tourism offer is already strong and its great to see that it is continuing to invest in assets such as new the Museum of Liverpool. My challenge now is to develop this unique brand and work with partners to take the city where it needs to be in 10-15 years time – which is among the very best city destinations in the world. I’m looking forward to working in the city and helping to shape the next chapter in its success story.”
The Director of Destination Liverpool is a fixed term post and was created as a direct response to the IDeA Peer Review of the Council Tourism service.
The appointment comes just two months after a national survey revealed Liverpool had leapt into the UK top ten of most visited cities, posting the best performance of any city, with an overall +28% increase in visits; and a 47% increase in holiday visits.
Councillor Gary Millar, Liverpool City Council’s Executive Member for Enterprise and Tourism, said: ”The position of Director of Destination Liverpool is a significant milestone in our plans to build on the legacy of Capital of Culture and propel Liverpool to the position as one of Europe’s premier cities.
”I’m delighted that in Alison we have appointed such a skilled operator with a fantastic track record at national level to promote the city in this critical phase. I’m sure the tourism sector and our partners will be keen to work with Alison and the highly experienced team she has been asked to lead.”
Rod Holmes Chair of The Mersey Partnership, Liverpool City Region’s Official Tourist Board, said: “Developing the appeal of Liverpool itself is critical if we are to realise the potential of the City Region to create more jobs and wealth through the visitor economy. This is an important appointment and we look forward to welcoming Alison and working with her.”
Nick Brooks-Sykes, Director of Tourism at the NWDA, said: “I am pleased to see that the City Council has recognised the importance of Liverpool’s visitor economy through this appointment. Tourism plays a vital role in our regional economy and Liverpool is one of our attack brands, capable of attracting the attention of high numbers of high-spending visitors. I look forward to working closely with both Alison and the Mersey Partnership over the coming years; collectively we have huge potential to boost Liverpool’s profile across the world.”
Topics: economic development, investment, Liverpool Vision, tourism, tourism growth, visitor economy
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