Q & A with Hugh Riley, CTO Interim Secretary General of the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO)

The Caribbean Tourism Organization remains committed to the advance of travel and tourism in the region. Together with the Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association (CHTA) and their joint marketing and business arm, the Caribbean Tourism Development Company (CTDC), CTO is pursuing a hands-on policy aimed at strengthening the region’s traditional markets and tapping into a number of emerging markets that are becoming increasingly important for the sector everywhere under the sun. In this exclusive interview with Caribbean News Digital, CTO Interim Secretary General Hugh Riley speaks fluently about those new plans in the pipeline and the new challenges for his organization on the road ahead.

Q.- From your position, how do you foresee the future of CTO in the midst of the
ongoing international scenario, so marked by a looming crisis that could really
hit the travel industry hard?
A.- It has never been more crucial to have an organization like the CTO to serve as an advocate and voice for the Caribbean region and to work tirelessly in conjunction with our private sector partners to advance the Caribbean brand. History tells us that market behavior is cyclical; this holds true for the economy, threats to international peace and currency fluctuations. Our region adapts, as do our consumers; what’s important is for us to continue to monitor the trends, learn from them, and provide a consistently high-quality vacation experience that offers great value for money. We must be aggressive about promoting the considerable competitive advantages of the Caribbean and ensuring that we continue to stimulate demand.

Q.- Will you embrace the projects that Mr. Vanderpool-Wallace was spearheading as Secretary General of CTO?
A.- Minister Vanderpool-Wallace during his tenure as the Secretary General of the CTO was instrumental in initiating and guiding a number of programs that have become the mainstay of Caribbean tourism marketing. His vision for using the combined strength of our region’s public and private sectors to create a powerful Caribbean brand has been endorsed, embraced and perpetuated by the CTO. I feel a certain responsibility to pursue these programs and to build upon them, even as we develop further strategies to keep in step with the changing realities.

Q.- A few years ago CTO mapped out a strategy aimed at boosting up market
diversification, the opening of new options and the tapping of new destinations
other than the English-speaking Caribbean, while giving Europe a bigger role in
this effort. How has this initiative been going? What outcomes have been reaped
so far?
A.- The CTO has representation in all of Europe ’s key source markets. In addition to very active UK and Holland Chapters, we maintain aggressive representation in Germany , and this year appointed representatives in Paris to look after the Latin markets of France, Italy and Spain. These initiatives cater to our English, Dutch, Spanish and French-speaking Caribbean countries. Additionally, the new Caribbean logo is translated and promoted in these source markets and the new website has been created in various languages. Our exploration of new markets as well as new niches in traditional markets is also proving to be of benefit to a cross-section of our members, many of whom depend upon this diversity for their success.

Q.- The U.S. recession, coupled with skyrocketing oil and fuel prices, has sent
some negative ripples all over the tourism sector. How much of an impact do you
foresee for the Caribbean region? What particular strategy will CTO embrace to
stave this off?
A.- These matters, particularly the impact of the rising fuel prices and the state of the U.S economy, have engaged the attention of the CTO and our members for quite some time. While it is still early to assess the impact of the current financial crisis on travel to the Caribbean, we believe that our region –by virtue of its proximity to the United States and the value of the product we offer- will have a considerable advantage over our competitors. Winter is coming; Americans will want to get away to places that are nearby, are welcoming and are a respite from the stress of everyday life.

Like the cost of fuel, the world financial situation affects everyone, not just the Caribbean. Our countries have been aggressive about tackling the air service issues head-on, assuring that shortfalls from one carrier have been supplemented by service from another. Equally important, our region has continued to diversify our sources of business so that when one market softens we still have others to rely upon. The recent performance of Canada is a good example of this strategy paying off. Others include our increasing strength in Europe and our return to South America .

Q.- Based on the initiative to enhance CTO’s horizons, how have you taken on
this process? What new members have joined CTO? What’s CTO’s current
structure and composition?
A.- The CTO is made up of 33 countries in the Dutch, English, French and Spanish Caribbean. That’s virtually every country in the region, both independent and non-independent states.

Q.- How do you assess the Caribbean ’s tourism evolution in recent years,
especially in the English-speaking and French-speaking Caribbean? How has CTO contributed to further develop the regional travel industry?
A.- As an organization that has existed for over 50 years, there is no doubt that CTO’s contribution to the Caribbean ’s tourism sector has been significant. We are the region’s tourism development agency, providing services that range from marketing and human resource development, to sustainable tourism development, research, information management, resource management, advocacy at the highest levels and the latest in technology. We have developed systems on which our members often model their own operations.

Last year, we created a partnership with the Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association (CHTA) called the Caribbean Tourism Development Company. The CTDC is a marketing and business development company that is jointly and equally owned by the CTO and CHTA. In March of this year, we launched a consumer website at http://www.caribbeantravel.com/ in the U.S and upgraded its counterpart http://www.caribbean.co.uk/ as a central portal to all things related to Caribbean travel.

Q.- Many destinations are putting their money on Europe as an outbound market.
However, the U.S. continues to be a major market for the entire region.
What’s CTO’s stance in this particular issue?
A.- We covered this in some of the items above. One of CTO’s primary purposes is to help, through tourism, to bring about improvements in the standard and quality of life in the Caribbean. One way of achieving this goal is to assist our member countries to improve the return on the investments they make in tourism. Diversifying the source markets is part of that strategy, while of course also protecting the region’s competitive position in the traditional markets.

Q.- Where is CTO taking its main promotional and advertising campaigns right now? What outbound markets and destinations are those campaigns homing in on?
A.- We’re focusing our promotions on core traditional markets in North America, the UK and Europe, while we explore opportunities in South America and conduct the necessary feasibility on the growing markets in Asia .

We have just concluded another successful Caribbean Week in Toronto, Canada where we presented a schedule of top tourism industry speakers, interactive panel discussions, a media marketplace and consumer events that promoted the excitement and vacation values of the Caribbean region, and significantly raised the awareness of the Caribbean brand through extensive media coverage. We host similar events in other major markets.

Q.- Your organization is also determined to promoting the Caribbean in many Latin American markets in a bid to lure far more visitors. How is that project faring right now?
A.- In October the Caribbean will have a significant presence at ABAV in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Individual member countries are actively promoting their tourism products in Venezuela and Argentina. These markets are extremely important to the Caribbean because of relative proximity, the value of Caribbean vacations to Latin Americans, and the tremendous advantage of being contra-seasonal, providing visitors to us on a virtually year-round basis.

Q.- Are there any promotional and training programs in store to target travel
agents working in and on the region?
A.- Through our relationships with major industry partners in all our main source markets we have been able to create or endorse Caribbean Specialist training programs for travel professionals for many years. This is an ongoing effort. Many of our individual member countries do an excellent job of creating and promoting their own specialist training programs, which act as a certification tool for travel agents whom we can then recommend to consumers who visit http://www.caribbeantravel.com/

Q.- How is collaboration between CTO and CHTA going as we speak? What future perspectives are in the pipeline, especially for the Latin American region?
A.- CTO and CHTA work closely together in marketing the Caribbean, and overall, protecting and promoting the interests of our members. The Caribbean Tourism Development Company was responsible for staging the hugely successful first Annual Caribbean Tourism Summit (ACTS) in Washington, DC in June, the creation and management of the region’s primary website http://www.caribbeantravel.com/, the publication of CaribbeanTravel.com the Magazine, the creation of the Million Home newspaper campaign, the management of an extensive public relations campaign through Lou Hammond & Associates, and other initiatives that are aimed at promoting, protecting, advancing and enhancing the Caribbean brand.

Q.- In the case of the European market, both as an outbound market and an
investor, what policy is CTO pursuing to attract European sunbathers and
investors to the Caribbean? What destinations are you focusing on the most?
A.- The CTO now has representation in five key European source markets mentioned in responses above. We have highlighted new European emerging markets and recently conducted the first Caribbean B2B workshop in Moscow, Milan and Paris. Following the success of those efforts we made a decision to extend our presence to Scandinavia in 2009. These target markets of course are not restricted to sunbathers. We are seeing a boost in niche tourism, attracting all segments of the activity market, the bridal market, the eco-friendly/green market, wellness market, corporate meetings/incentives, and more.

Q.- Some major Spanish hotel chains are making it strong in many Caribbean
destinations in recent years. How are the relations between CTO and those
Spanish hoteliers? How do you asses their work and their future perspectives?
A.- CTO’s relationship with the hotel sector is largely through the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association.