Orange County Visitors Association Names Travel And Hospitality Industry Leader Ed Fuller President & CEO

IRVINE, Calif., July 15, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The Board of Directors of the Orange County Visitors Association (OCVA) has announced it has appointed internationally recognized travel and hospitality industry leader, Ed Fuller, as President and Chief Executive Officer of the organization, effective immediately.  Mr. Fuller currently is President and Co-Founder of locally-based Laguna Strategic Advisors, a consortium of independent business executives.

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Concurrently, Laguna Strategic Advisors member Chip Stuckmeyer was named Vice President of Project Management and long-time Orange County tourism leader Anita Vanaman was named Vice President of Administration of the Association.

"We are delighted that someone with the renowned industry expertise and acumen of Ed Fuller will help us take advantage of the many economic and cultural opportunities tourism affords Orange County," said Gary Sherwin, OCVA Board Chairman. "Tourism is a critical component of our economic base and we are confident that Ed will effectively help propel us to the next level and beyond especially in the global arena."

"The OC (Orange County) is a brand with worldwide tourism appeal," said Ed Fuller. "We are eager to start working with local tourism leaders, stakeholders and potential strategic partners to showcase the best Orange County has to offer to attract our fair share of the more than $100 billion in tourism spending generated in California each year."

Mr. Fuller brings more than 40 years of experience in the travel and tourism industry to his new role. Most recently, he was President and Managing Director of Marriott International's International Lodging Division where, for more than two decades, he led the company's global expansion into more than 70 countries and helped grow the company's international annual sales from $350 million to more than $8 billion.  In addition, he is a noted educator in hospitality management at several institutions in California and Massachusetts, including the University of California at Irvine and at California State University at Pomona and serves as a Commissioner of Travel and Tourism in California.  He is also the best-selling author of "You Can't Lead With Your Feet on the Desk," which recounts episodes from his colorful career.

A proven leader in the hospitality industry, Mr. Stuckmeyer will apply his more than 30 years of global sales and marketing experience to the management of strategic initiatives to promote The OC as an attractive and compelling destination.  His three-decades-long career at Marriott International took him from California to Hong Kong and Macau to Washington and London, giving him extensive knowledge in the development of positioning and branding strategies and plan development for different parts of the world.   In addition, sales and marketing teams he led generated in excess of $1 billion in revenues. On leaving Marriott, Mr. Stuckmeyer established Stuckmeyer and Associates, an international hospitality consulting firm, specializing in sales and marketing.

As Vice President of Administration, long-time OC tourism leader Anita Vanaman will continue to oversee management and business functions of the OCVA and lend her considerable expertise to future OCVA programs. She brings more than 30 years of successful sales, marketing, and human resource experience in the theme park, tourism and hospitality industries, primarily at the Walt Disney Company.   

SOURCE Orange County Visitors Association