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Fred Olsen Cruise Lines appoints head of sales
Fred Olsen Cruise Lines has confirmed the appointment of Geoff Ridgeon as its new head of sales, from May 7 2019.
Reporting in to sales and marketing director Justin Stanton, Ridgeon will take overall responsibility for managing Fred Olsen’s UK sales teams, as well as further developing relations with the travel trade.
Ridgeon has been head of cruise at Fred Olsen Travel, which is also based in Ipswich, Suffolk, since 2011, and has fulfilled a number of roles over his 22-year career at Fred Olsen, including franchise manager, sales manager of Star Clippers, and reception manager across the Fred Olsen fleet.
He takes over from Mike Evans, who retires on April 27 after a 27-year career with Fred Olsen.
Ridgeon said: "I look forward to bringing my 14 years of travel agency experience to Fred Olsen Cruise Lines, which will stand us in good stead in growing our relationships with the trade.
"Of course, I will be sad to leave Fred Olsen Travel and GoCruise, where I have enjoyed a long and varied career, but I am thrilled to be joining another thriving part of the Fred Olsen business.
"I look forward to working with the trade to further develop the understanding of Fred Olsen’s leading ‘closer’ strategy of unrivalled destination experience, exceptional customer service and friendly, smaller ships. Having worked on them myself earlier in my career, I can definitely recommend them!"
Justin Stanton said: "Geoff is well-known within the travel industry and – while we will really feel the loss of Mike Evans moving on – he will be a great addition to our senior management team."
Lisa
Lisa joined Travel Weekly nearly 25 years ago as technology reporter and then sailed around the world for a couple of years as cruise correspondent, before becoming deputy editor. Now freelance, Lisa writes for various print and web publications, edits Corporate Traveller’s client magazine, Gateway, and works on the acclaimed Remembering Wildlife series of photography books, which raise awareness of nature’s most at-risk species and helps to fund their protection.
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