A-ROSA River Cruises has created a new head of sales role for the UK market and appointed Stephen Joyner to the position.
The river cruise line sells only through trade partners in the UK, and the new role forms part of its ongoing development plans to further build the brand in the UK market.
Joyner will be joining on October 7. He has held a range of roles during his career, on both the retail and cruise line sides, including cruise club manager at the Travel Network Group, strategic account manager at Royal Caribbean International and consulting for Fred Olsen Travel to introduce Pulmantur Cruises into the UK. More recently Stephen worked outside of the cruise sector as head of trade sales at Affordable Car Hire, before taking up his current role as sales director at BSP Auto.
As head of sales, Joyner will report directly to A-ROSA UK?s managing director, Lucia Rowe. He will be tasked for leading the UK sales team, implementing sales strategies to drive business, and identifying new growth opportunities. He will also be responsible for the training and development of the on-the-road business development managers, being a brand ambassador for the cruise line within the industry.
Lucia Rowe, managing director UK and Ireland for the cruise line, said: ?We are delighted to welcome Stephen to our UK team. He brings with him a wealth of experience both on the retail and supplier side, which I believe will be invaluable in the role. The trade is of paramount importance to A-ROSA in the UK and creating this new position will ensure we give it even greater focus going forward. Stephen is a highly analytical and commercial astute professional, with a vast amount of experience in managing complex sales tasks and achieving ambitious sales targets, whilst being a great leader to his teams. He is also well known in the trade and his appointment will further reinforce our plans to develop and grow our partnerships here in the UK.?
Joyner said: I am so excited to be returning to cruise after a few years out of this amazing sector. I join at a time when river cruise continues to grow in popularity and A-ROSA has successfully positioned itself as a significant player in the UK market over recent years. My role will be to step things up a level and help drive A-ROSA?s ambitious development plans for the coming years. I want to bolster the brands UK presence further and announcements such as the groundbreaking new E-motion Rhine ship, entering the market in 2021, is one that I?m looking forward to showcasing with our trade partners as soon as more details are released.?
