Lieb Management Partners with Hills Balfour to Represent Brand USA's Interests in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and the Netherlands
Brand USA, the destination marketing organisation for the United States, has appointed travel representation and PR consultancy Hills Balfour to act as its agency of record across Europe. Following an in-depth review process initiated by Brand USA in September 2017, Hills Balfour will represent Brand USA’s travel trade interests in France, Benelux, Italy, Spain, Germany, Austria and Switzerland, in addition to its established responsibilities representing Brand USA in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Hills Balfour will work with Brand USA in Europe to position the United States as a premier travel destination in order to increase visitation, spend and market share for the United States. As part of this effort, Hills Balfour will work collaboratively with its sister agencies on the continent to ensure that all in-market activity represents Brand USA in ways that support its strategies and mission and protects the organisation’s integrity and brand.
In Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and the Netherlands, Hills Balfour will partner with Lieb Management who will focus on promoting the United States to the German-speaking and Dutch markets. In France, Benelux, Italy and Spain, Hills Balfour will partner with Interface Tourism Group to support Brand USA’s mission and tell the amazing stories of unique and exceptional travel experiences available in the USA.
"Europe represents the largest overseas travel region to the United States and we are confident that Hills Balfour’s European expertise in travel marketing will help us reach and welcome even more visitors from Europe in the years to come,” says Christopher L. Thompson, Brand USA President and CEO. “We look forward to extending our footprint with Hills Balfour in order to build upon our strong presence and relationships in-market to promote travel to the United States to, through, and beyond the gateways.”
Amanda Hills, Hills Balfour CEO, says “I am extremely proud that Hills Balfour has been selected to represent Brand USA’s interests across Europe. Hills Balfour works with the best in the business and we are excited to have the opportunity, in partnership with our sister agencies across Europe, to continue to support Brand USA’s mission. As market leaders on the continent, our innovative approach to travel marketing will help enhance the image of the USA in Europe and bring a wealth of new opportunities to partners.”
Ralf Lieb, CEO of Lieb Management, adds “The United States offers travellers some of the most diverse travel experiences of any destination in the world and I am thrilled that Lieb Management has been selected to represent Brand USA in the German-speaking countries and the Netherlands.”
Hills Balfour’s Samuel Hancock will act as European Strategic Director within the agency. As an extension of the Brand USA team, Samuel will be responsible for the development and execution of a pan-European strategy focused on driving visitation and revenue to the United States. The role will ensure that a strategic plan for effectuating Brand USA’s goals in market are developed and successfully implemented. During his seven years at Hills Balfour, Samuel has spearheaded the marketing efforts for a number of U.S. destination clients, including Choose Chicago, Fort Worth Convention & Visitors Bureau, Discover The Palm Beaches, Visit Dallas and Visit North Carolina.
Samuel will be supported by Lieb Management’s Florian Renner, Brand USA’s Strategic Director dedicated to the development of the German-speaking and Dutch markets. Previously, Florian worked for the Visit USA Committee Germany for a total of eight years, four of them as General Manager. He has been part of the Lieb Management team since January 2017 and most recently, oversaw the VISIT FLORIDA account. In the Netherlands, Florian will be assisted by Nicole Conrad, who worked has worked previously for Air Transat as Commercial Director Central Europe. Nicole has been charge of the Dutch market for Lieb Management since 2017.
Europe represents the largest world region for overseas* arrivals to the United States. In 2016, 14.7 million visitors from Europe came to the USA, 39.2% of the total share.
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NOTES TO EDITORS: *Overseas includes all countries except Canada and Mexico.
ABOUT BRAND USA:
Brand USA, the destination marketing organization for the United States, was established by the Travel Promotion Act as the nation's first public-private partnership to promote the United States as a premier travel destination and to communicate U.S. travel policies and procedures to worldwide travelers. The organization’s mission is to increase international visitation to the USA in order to fuel the U.S. economy and enhance the image of the United States worldwide. Formed as the Corporation for Travel Promotion in 2010, the public-private entity began operations in May 2011 and does business as Brand USA. According to studies by Oxford Economics, over the past four years Brand USA's marketing initiatives have helped welcome 4.3 million incremental visitors to the USA, benefiting the U.S. economy with nearly $30 billion in total economic impact, which has supported, on average, 51,000 incremental jobs a year.
Brand USA first established international representation in the United Kingdom and Ireland in March 2012.
For industry or partner information about Brand USA, visit TheBrandUSA.com. For information about exceptional and unexpected travel experiences in the United States, please visit Brand USA’s consumer website VisitTheUSA.com (global).
ABOUT HILLS BALFOUR:
Hills Balfour is a leading integrated public relations and representation consultancy offering a wide range of services from media relations to consumer marketing to social media. Current U.S. destination clients include Brand USA, Arizona Office of Tourism, Discover The Palm Beaches, Fort Worth Convention & Visitors Bureau, Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau, Hawai`i Tourism Europe, Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, Nevada Commission on Tourism, NYC & Company, Santa Monica Travel & Tourism, Scottsdale Convention & Visitors Bureau, Puerto Rico Tourism Company and Visit Dallas. To read more about Hills Balfour, please visit HillsBalfour.com.
ABOUT LIEB MANAGEMENT:
Lieb Management & Beteiligungs GmbH is a full-service agency based in the heart of Munich, offering tailor-made solutions in Marketing, PR and MICE for tourism clients. The portfolio includes destinations such as Texas, Hawai'i, Florida and Ontario, but also hotel clients such as Wilderness Safaris or attractions such as the Broadway Collection. To read more about Lieb Management, please visit Lieb-Management.de.
MEDIA CONTACTS:
Hills Balfour
Mark McCulloch
Communications Director
+44 (0)207.593.1715 office
+44 (0)787.297.0320 mobile
[email protected]
Brand USA
Anne Madison
Chief Strategy & Communications Officer
+1 202.536.2086 office
+1 202.695.5351 mobile
[email protected]
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About Brand USA
Brand USA, the destination marketing organization for the United States, was established by the Travel Promotion Act as the nation’s first public-private partnership to promote the United States as a premier travel destination and to communicate U.S. travel policies and procedures to worldwide travelers. The organization’s mission is to increase international visitation to the United States in order to fuel the U.S. economy and enhance the image of the United States worldwide. Formed as the Corporation for Travel Promotion in 2010, the public-private entity began operations in May 2011 and does business as Brand USA. According to studies by Oxford Economics, over the past ten years Brand USA's marketing initiatives have helped welcome 8 million incremental visitors to the United States, benefiting the U.S. economy with more than $58 billion in total economic impact and supporting, on average, more than 37,000 incremental jobs a year.
For industry or partner information about Brand USA, visit TheBrandUSA.com or follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, and X/Twitter. To discover more about the USA and the boundless diversity of American travel experiences and authentic, rich culture, please visit Brand USA's consumer website VisitTheUSA.com; follow Visit The USA on Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram; and watch travel shows on GoUSATV.