Rick Taylor
BIOGRAPHY
- University of Lausanne, Switzerland – Bachelor of Commerce
- Lausanne Hotel School: Management Diploma
- Marketing & Market Research Diploma (London)
- Business Management Diploma (London)
- Executive Development Diploma (London)
Rick comes from a marketing / advertising background, with over 20 years strategic experience in this arena.
His involvement in the Tourism Industry began in 1994 with the purchase of the Hout Bay Hotel in Cape Town, South Africa.
From 1998 Rick was a pioneer in the greater Cape Town tourism industry where, as CEO of Cape Metropolitan Tourism he introduced numerous innovative marketing concepts such as Cape Town’s ‘Secret Season', BestCities.net, Beautiful Bays and Great Wine Capitals of the World.
Rick set up South Africa’s first stand alone Convention Bureau, marketing Greater Cape Town as an international meetings destination and positioning the region firmly on the global meetings and incentives map. Through his leadership, Cape Town rose from 51 to 30 on the ICCA list of top international conference and incentive cities in 2000. Furthermore, the Cape Town Convention Bureau won over 80% of all conference bids.
In 2004 Rick was appointed to South African Tourism to set up a National Convention Bureau on their behalf.
Rick is a popular speaker at international conferences and has sat on a number of National and International Boards in the tourism arena for example:
- Past Chairman: South African Meetings Industry Federation
- Past Chairman: Great Wine Capitals of the World
- Director: DMAI (Strategic and Global Advisory Committee - USA)
- Past Chairman: South African Federation of Convention Cities
- Board Member: Tourism Business Council of South Africa
- Board Member: La Maison de la France / Air France (current)
He now runs The Business Tourism Company, an International African based Strategic Planning and Facilitation Tourism Consultancy focused on the Marketing, Management, Development and Training of tourism and hospitality destinations and products.
rick@thebusinesstourismcompany.co.za
www.thebusinesstourismcompany.com
