Bouldin to lead Royal Caribbean UK

Ben Bouldin has been promoted to associate vice president and UK & Ireland managing director of Royal Caribbean, replacing Stuart Leven who has moved upstairs to become vice president of Europe, Middle East and Africa.

Leven will now look after all three Royal Caribbean brands.

No replacement has been found for Bouldin as of yet, with the recruitment process underway.

Leven will report into Gavin Smith, senior vice president of international. He said: “Stuart is a proven leader with many years’ board experience across the airline, hotel and dotcom sectors.”

He joined us with a clear vision to build a distinct brand and attract a new audience to cruise. Royal Caribbean International in the UK and Ireland has seen unprecedented growth under Stuart’s watch and his experience and expertise will be vital as we look to expand our European deployment.”

Leven himself said: “We’ve seen the European cruise market grow 111% in the last ten years and there has been over $17 billion of investment.”

As a business, Royal Caribbean is known for driving the industry forwards through creative innovation, industry-leading cruise ships, and extraordinary experiences. We have a fantastic opportunity to realise our potential in Europe and I’m delighted to be at the helm ahead of such an exciting journey”.

Bouldin commented: “I’m absolutely delighted to be leading the Royal Caribbean International UK and Ireland business. It’s an incredible opportunity at an exciting time for the cruise market. We have an extraordinary team here in the UK and Ireland and I look forward to building on the work Stuart has started during his tenure.”

The company has also hired George Scott as regional sales manager for Scotland.

Scott joins Royal from Kuoni Travel where he was store manager. He begins his role in the new year.

He will report into Sarah Weetman, head of retail, UK & Ireland.

Sarah Weetman, Head of Retail, UK & Ireland said, “We’re excited to welcome George to our UK sales team in the New Year. George brings a wealth of knowledge to the role with his extensive experience in the travel industry and great relationships with the trade, helping us develop our retail team into the industry’s best.

Scotland is an important focus for us, and as we continue to expand we know that George has the skillset required to drive this growth through 2017 and beyond.”

Scott added, “I am really looking forward to joining such a dynamic and industry-leading brand and I can’t wait to introduce even more guests to the extraordinary world of Royal Caribbean.”