December 7, 2015

Arne Sorenson has been named Member of the Board at Brand USA

Washington, District of Columbia, United States

The board of directors of Brand USA today announced the re-appointment by Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker of Marriott President & CEO Arne Sorenson, who currently serves as board chair, to its board of directors, as well as the appointment of three new board members. The newly appointed and reappointed members include Arne Sorenson, President and CEO, Marriott International, Inc., who currently serves as the chair of the board (re-appointment), Kyle Edmiston, assistant secretary, Louisiana Office of Tourism (new appointment), Maryann Ferenc, owner & CEO, Mise en Place (new appointment) , Rossi Ralenkotter, president & CEO, Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (new appointment). Each appointment is effective Dec. 1, 2015 for a term of three years. Since its establishment, Brand USA has demonstrated a positive impact on international visitation. In fact, according to studies by Oxford Economics, from 2013 through 2014, Brand USA’s marketing initiatives have helped bring more than 2 million incremental visitors to the USA, benefitting the U.S. economy with nearly copy5 billion in business sales; nearly $2 billion in federal, state and local taxes; and supporting, on average, 50,000 incremental jobs per year. In addition, the United States’ share of total international travel increased from approximately 12% in 2011 to 13.5% in 2014 (and the USA’s share of long-haul travel increased from 6.4% to 6.7%).

General Management USA & Canada United States District of Columbia Washington