EVENT PROGRAM

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1:15 PM - 1:30 PM ET BRAND USA GERMANY UPDATE

CASSADY BAILEY, SENIOR DIRECTOR, PARTNER ENGAGEMENT AND PLANNING, BRAND USA

AMANDA DAVIS, MANAGER, GLOBAL MARKETS, BRAND USA

JULIE HEIZER, DEPUTY DIRECTOR, NATIONAL TRAVEL AND TOURISM OFFICE, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

1:05 PM - 1:15 PM ET AN UPDATE FROM THE NATIONAL TRAVEL AND TOURISM OFFICE

12:15 PM - 12:25 PM ET BREAK

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 23

11:00 AM - 11:05 AM ET BRAND USA WELCOME

11:05 AM - 11:35 AM ET OVERVIEW OF GERMAN TRAVEL BEHAVIOR AND CONSUMER SENTIMENT

CHRIS THOMPSON, PRESIDENT & CEO, BRAND USA

PROGRAM OVERVIEW

ULF SONNTAG, PROJECT HEAD REISEANALYSE, FORSCHUNGSGEMEINSCHAFT URLAUB UND REISEN E.V. (FUR)

11:35 AM - 12:15 PM ET GERMANY: AN IN-DEPTH LOOK AT THE TRAVEL TRADE, CONSUMER SENTIMENT AND THE CURRENT SITUATION OF TRAVEL TO THE USAHOLGER JACOBS, EDITOR NORTH AMERICA, FVW

PHILIPP DETMER, DIRECTOR NORTH AMERICA, DER TOURISTIK

TILO KRAUSE-DÜNOW, PRESIDENT & CEO, CANUSA TOURISTIK

PIA HAMBROCK, HEAD OF PRODUCT AND OPERATIONS, CRD TOURISTIK

HENRY BARCHET, RADIO JOURNALIST AT SWR RADIO STATION AND PRODUCER OF “AUDIOTRAVELS”

JENNIFER LATUPERISA-ANDRESEN, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, REISEN EXCLUSIV

DR. ELFI VOMBERG, FREELANCE JOURNALIST FOR THE RHEINISCHE POST

NADINE SIEGER, U.S. CORRESPONDENT OF THE GERMAN ELLE MAGAZINE/ELLE DECORATION

12:25 PM - 12:55 PM ET PURPOSEFUL CONTENT, MEANINGFUL CONVERSATIONS: U.S. TRAVEL CONTENT IN GERMAN MEDIA DURING AND AFTER A YEAR OF CRISIS

12:55 PM - 1:05 PM ET GERMAN TRAVEL LANDSCAPE, MEDIACOM

SANDRA VONDERECK, MEDIACOM GERMANY, DIRECTOR

MEDIA CONSULTING, INTERNATIONAL

FLORIAN RITT, MEDIACOM GERMANY, DIRECTOR MEDIA CONSULTING

1:30 PM - 1:35 PM ET CLOSING REMARKS

1:35 PM - 2:00 PM ET NETWORKING AND Q&A WITH TODAY’S SPEAKERS

TOM GARZILLI, CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER, BRAND USA

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SPEAKER BIOS LISTED IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE

CHRIS THOMPSON PRESIDENT & CEO BRAND USA

Chris is president and CEO of Brand USA, the USA’s public-private partnership dedicated to increasing international visitation to the United States through marketing and promotional efforts. Chris is responsible for accelerating the organization’s efforts to build and execute effective marketing strategies to increase U.S. travel exports, create jobs, strengthen the economy, and help enhance the image of the United States internationally. Under Chris’ leadership, Brand USA has nearly tripled its partnership network and more than doubled its partner contributions and program offerings.

Chris has over 30 years of experience in the travel and tourism industry. Before joining Brand USA, Chris was president and CEO of Visit Florida. Under his leadership, Florida realized record growth in international visitation. Throughout his career, Chris has been honored with a number of industry awards and recognized for numerous accomplishments. To name a few, he was first recipient of Skål International’s USA National Tourism Leadership Award in 2018 in recognition of his “very meaningful contribution to the growth and success of tourism in the United States,” and in 2015, Chris received the NTA National Tour Association’s (NTA) Pioneer Award for his accomplishments in producing significant changes in the travel industry.

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ULF SONNTAGPROJECT HEAD REISEANALYSE, FORSCHUNGSGEMEINSCHAFT URLAUB UND REISEN E.V. (FUR)

Ulf Sonntag is head of market research and associate director at NIT, Institute for Tourism Research in Northern Europe, Kiel, Germany. He studied geography, political science and business administration at the University of Bonn, with international semesters in the USA (Hawaii Pacific University) and Switzerland. Ulf is the project manager of the German Reiseanalyse and in this position provider and advisor regarding tourism insights for holiday destinations and tour operators. Another area of Ulf’s work is connected with fostering the sustainable development of tourism often in the context of international projects. Ulf is also one of the authors of the Reiseanalyse Trend Study 2030.

HOLGER JACOBSEDITOR NORTH AMERICA, FVW

Holger M. Jacobs has been the North America editor for FVW Medien (dtv Media Group), the largest German travel media house, for more than two decades. After studying economics at German Federal Bank and working as financial editor at Gabler Verlag (Bertelsmann Group), he joined FVW Medien (formerly Verlag Dieter Niedecken) in Hamburg, Germany, in 1994. After attending his first International Pow Wow (IPW) in 1997, Jacobs travels to the USA at least three times a year for research (pre-COVID-19). He is responsible for all North America coverage in the leading German travel trade magazine fvw | TravelTalk (print and online).

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TILO KRAUSE-DÜNOWPRESIDENT & CEO, CANUSA TOURISTIK

Tilo studied economics in Kieland, graduating in 1977 as Dipl. Betriebswirt (business economist). He started his career in the management of tour companies and founded CANUSA TOURISTIK in 1983 as a 50% shareholder and owns CANUSA TOURISTIK together with Timmo, his son. He acted as in-market chair of the Canadian Tourism Commission in Germany from 1998 to 2010. Tilo was elected to the board of the German Visit USA Committee in 2002 and still serves today.

PIA HAMBROCKHEAD OF PRODUCT AND OPERATIONS, CRD TOURISTIK

Pia Hambrock is the Head of Product & Operations at CRD Touristik (formerly CRD International), one of the leading specialized tour operators for North America in Germany, mainly selling B2C. Pia has been able to turn her passion into a career, joining CRD in 2015 after finishing her tourism studies, including a semester in Canada and living in the USA for a year. In her role, she is responsible for product development, all marketing and public relations activities as well as overseeing the in-house

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PHILIPP DETMERDIRECTOR NORTH AMERICA, DER TOURISTIK

Philipp has been with DER Touristik for 20 years, working in different Product Management positions. He started as Product Coordinator in the North America department and has also been Product Manager at Deluxe Longhaul and Team Lead Product Management of the Nordic Countries. His focus is always to combine a strong product mix with an appealing message in-market.

HENRY BARCHETRADIO JOURNALIST AT SWR AND PRODUCER OF AUDIOTRAVELS

Henry Barchet has been working as a radio journalist and radio show host on Germany’s second-largest radio network, SWR, since 1989. He launched his own travel podcasting radio channel “Audiotravels” in 2011. (http://audiotravels.podbean.com). Since then, “Audiotravels” has become one of Germany’s most successful travel podcasts with more than 30,000 listeners each month. The unique audio podcast with original soundbites, music and voices from around the world is also streamed as additional content for newspapers and magazines. In 2019, “Audiotravels” joined the iHeartRadio network, Amazon Music and Bullhorn FM. More and more than 25 streaming platforms around the world play the AUDIOTRAVELS-Episodes. Before joining the SWR radio network, he worked for several radio and TV stations in Germany.

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NADINE SIEGERU.S. CORRESPONDENT OF THE GERMAN ELLE MAGAZINE/ELLE DECORATION

Based in the New York BURDA (one of the biggest publishing houses in Germany) office for more than 20 years, Nadine feeds all U.S.-related content to the German ELLE head office. She covers travel (destinations and hotels) as well as lifestyle stories. ELLE magazine has approximately 511,000 readers (circulation 79,470) and is published monthly.

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JENNIFER LATUPERISA-ANDRESENEDITOR-IN-CHIEF, REISEN EXCLUSIV

The consumer travel magazine reisen EXCLUSIV is published quarterly and is one of the top and most long-established travel magazines in Germany. Jennifer is editor-in-chief and publisher at the publishing house Ella Verlag und Medien GmbH, which also includes corporate publishing and digital storytelling including podcasts. The magazine caters to a diverse audience that travels worldwide and appreciates thoroughly researched stories covering well-known and off-the-beaten-path features as well as specific recommendations such as hotels, attractions and lifestyle topics. These are also available on the website: https://reisenexclusiv.com, with a reach exceeding 10 million page views a month.

DR. ELFI VOMBERG FREELANCE TRAVEL WRITER

Elfi works as a regular freelance for the Rheinische Post, a statewide newspaper including 26 local editions in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate. The print edition has a circulation of approximately 277,000, and their online platform has about 48.5 million visitors.

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SANDRA VONDERECKMEDIACOM GERMANY, DIRECTOR MEDIA CONSULTING, INTERNATIONAL

Sandra has eight years of media experience on both the local and international levels working with clients such as Volkswagen, Bayer, Allianz, Deutsche Telekom and Uber. She lived in London for three and a half years before returning to Germany in 2019.

FLORIAN RITT MEDIACOM GERMANY, DIRECTOR MEDIA CONSULTING

Florian has 13 years of media experience on a local level working with clients such as British Airways, Qantas Airlines, Kayak, Volkswagen, Deutsche Telekom and PSA.

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JULIE HEIZERDEPUTY DIRECTORNATIONAL TRAVEL AND TOURISM OFFICEU.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Julie Heizer rejoined the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) in September 2003 as Deputy Director, Industry Relations, for the National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO), formerly known as the Office of Travel and Tourism Industries. As deputy director, she is responsible for industry outreach, partnerships and strategic alliances. Julie serves as the department’s liaison to Brand USA and manages all federal components of the Travel Promotion Act, including oversight of Brand USA’s $100 million matching funds submissions and their and the government’s compliance with the Travel Promotion Act.

From 1997 until 2003, she was director, and then vice president, of Tourism for Destination DC (formerly the Washington, DC Convention and Tourism Corporation). In this capacity, she was responsible for domestic and international tourism development and sales programs, as well as for the organization’s consumer inquiry and fulfillment programs.

Prior to her work for Destination DC, Julie served as assistant director of development for the Maryland Office of Tourism Development, where she was responsible for the development and management of Maryland tourism product, as well as the necessary support programs needed to carry out the mandate of the job, including the state’s welcome centers, research and publications/website development.

Julie spent four years as the manager of Private Sector Marketing for the United States Travel and Tourism Administration, a former agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce, and predecessor to NTTO. USTTA’s mission was to promote international tourism to the United States. Julie’s responsibilities included industry outreach, partnerships and strategic alliances, managing new programs and products developed as a result of those partnerships, and liaising with national travel industry associations and organizations to keep them involved and informed about the importance of tourism to the economy of the United States.

She served as executive director of the Virginia Peninsula Tourism and Conference Bureau and was the first executive director of the Montgomery County, Maryland Convention and Visitors Bureau, both multi faceted destination marketing organizations. Her career in the travel industry began 40-plus years ago at the U.S. Travel Association, where she worked in the marketing, membership and national councils’ departments. Heizer recently realized she’s actually been in the travel and tourism industry since middle school, when she helped her history teacher organize and execute school trips to Hersheypark, Williamsburg and New York City – which only underscores how much of a dinosaur she really is, and how deeply ingrained travel is in her DNA.

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CASSADY BAILEYSENIOR DIRECTOR, PARTNER ENGAGEMENT & PLANNING, BRAND USA

Cassady Bailey is senior director, partner marketing and planning for Brand USA, the public-private partnership responsible for launching the United States’ first nationally coordinated tourism marketing effort. Cassady heads up interactions with Brand USA’s expanding network of nearly 500 partners. Her department assists partners with cooperative marketing opportunities and manages efforts to attain targeted levels of partner contributions and renewals. These continued efforts have great success as Cassady and her team have a 94 percent partner retention rate.

Cassady joined Brand USA in October 2012 as a business development assistant and subsequently moved into the roles of partner service representative and partner services manager. Previously, Cassady interned at the U.S. Travel Association, where she assisted with conference planning.

AMANDA DAVISMANAGER, GLOBAL MARKETS, BRAND USA

Amanda Davis is manager, global markets (UK and Europe) for Brand USA, the public-private partnership responsible for launching the United States’ first nationally coordinated tourism marketing effort. Amanda had been coordinator then senior coordinator for the Global Trade team, a position she held since joining Brand USA in June 2016. During her association, she has been instrumental in supporting the USA Discovery Program, Brand USA’s online-training program for international travel agents. She has also worked extensively with Brand USA MegaFams (large-scale familiarization tours) and tradeshows.

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TOM GARZILLICHIEF MARKETING OFFICER,BRAND USA

Thomas Garzilli is the chief marketing officer for Brand USA, the nation’s destination marketing organization. In this role, Tom is responsible for leading the development of Brand USA’s strategic marketing plan and all efforts to ensure Brand USA achieves year-over-year revenue, visitation and economic impact targets.

Brand USA has raised more than $750 million in contributions from over 500 partners and has developed many successful and award-winning marketing programs, most notably through the introduction of Brand USA’s Many Voices/Multi-Screen Strategy, along with innovative travel trade initiatives. These initiatives include the creation and distribution of three giant-screen documentary films (“National Parks Adventure,” “America’s Musical Journey” and “Into America’s Wild”); the launch of GoUSA TV, the first of its kind streaming channel; and “Brand USA Travel Week,” a unique travel trade buyer/seller experience.

Tom’s experience in the travel industry spans five decades. Before joining Brand USA in 2013, he was managing partner of Custom Marketing Group (CMG), an award-winning destination marketing and custom publishing company he co-founded in 1992. Prior to CMG, Tom spent 15 years in his family’s wholesale travel business.

Tom earned his BBA in marketing from Pace University, Lubin School of Business, and he and his wife, Natalie, have three children.