Jean-Claude Baumgarten and Gina Diez Barroso de Franklin Appointed to Global Spa & Wellness Summit’s Board of Directors
New York, NY (PRWEB) January 29, 2014 -- The Global Spa & Wellness Summit (GSWS) today announced that Jean-Claude Baumgarten, current chairman and CEO of CREWE Associates, and Gina Diez Barroso de Franklin, founder, president and CEO of Mexico City-based Grupo Diarq, have been named to its Board of Directors. Baumgarten, who recently led the WTTC for nearly a dozen years, is one of the world’s top tourism experts, and Diez Barroso de Franklin has helmed one of the most prestigious real estate development and design firms in Latin America for nearly 25 years. Both will be critical in helping guide the GSWS as it significantly expands its mission and identity in 2014.
“It’s such an honor to bring two individuals with such deep – and completely unique – expertise to our organization,” said Susie Ellis, GSWS chairman and CEO. “Jean-Claude has an unparalleled history in, and knowledge of, the global tourism industry, and Gina brings an extraordinary background in real estate and hospitality development, education, design and media. The GSWS has accomplished much in its seven-year history, but these two powerful minds will be invaluable in helping us accomplish so much more for the global wellness industry over the next few years.”
About Jean-Claude Baumgarten: Baumgarten served as the president and CEO of the World Travel & Tourism Council, the global authority on the economic and social impact of tourism, from 1999 until 2010. Prior to the WTTC he held various executive positions with Air France for 30 years, including serving as Executive Vice President of Corporate, International & Industry Affairs. He is currently Chairman and CEO of CREWE Associates, a management consultancy for governments and private companies. He has received numerous awards for his tourism industry achievements, and he is a Chevalier in the French Ordre National de la Légion d'Honneur, as well as an Officier in the Ordre National du Mérite and a Chevalier des Arts et Lettres.
“Because of my long involvement in the tourism industry, I have become increasingly interested over the years in the surge for wellbeing - in the travel category and beyond,” said Baumgarten. “What the GSWS has achieved so far is outstanding, and I'm excited to help shape this dynamic organization as it takes its next, major steps - and expands its reach and research to become one of the true global thought-leaders for the fast-growing (and good-for-the-world) $2 trillion global wellness industry.”
About Gina Diez Barroso de Franklin: Diez Barroso de Franklin has been a pioneer in real estate, design, the arts and education since she created Grupo Diarq in 1990, a firm with a mission of promoting and developing Mexican creativity. As CEO and president she has grown the enterprise to nine subsidiaries with more than 500 employees: from a real estate/hospitality development subsidiary that has completed over 650 projects - to an education subsidiary that created the University of Design, Film & Media, recognized as Mexico’s best university in these fields – to a publishing house, GYA, which has released books like Harmony, Serenity, Balance: Spectacular Spas of Mexico. She has founded several non-profit organizations (from one aimed at eradicating domestic and school violence, to another that grants merit-based scholarships to students pursuing creative studies), and she is the only Mexican that belongs to C200 (200 Women Business Leaders of the World).
“Being part of the GSWS is a huge responsibility for me, especially as I don’t come from the spa or wellness industries, but rather from the fields of real estate development and education in design and media,” said Diez Barroso de Franklin. “But I’m sure that my knowledge of creative studies and innovation can help the GSWS have a different view, and aid in the development and growth of this amazing project.”
The eighth annual Global Spa & Wellness Summit will be held at the Four Seasons Resort in Marrakech, Morocco from September 10-12, 2014. And the second-annual Global Wellness Tourism Congress will be held on Wednesday, September 10th.
To register for the 2014 Summit, visit: http://www.cvent.com/events/the-2014-global-spa-wellness-summit/event-summary-b3a22b809e3f48839a5b60e5168c9a22.aspx
About the Summit: The Global Spa & Wellness Summit (GSWS) is an international organization representing senior executives and leaders from over 40 countries, joined by a common interest to drive economic development and understanding of the spa and wellness industries. Delegates from diverse sectors, including hospitality, tourism, health and wellness, beauty, finance, medical, real estate, manufacturing and technology, attend the organization’s annual Summit, which is held in a different host country each year. After just seven years, the GSWS is now considered the leading global research and educational resource for the $1.9 trillion spa and wellness industry. It is known for introducing major industry initiatives such as SpaEvidence.com, the world’s first online portal to the medical evidence behind common spa and wellness therapies. For more information, visit http://www.gsws.org.
Beth McGroarty, rbi creative, 213.300.0107, [email protected]
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