Kevin Bowler, CEO, TNZ
AFTER almost seven years helming Tourism New Zealand (TNZ), its chief executive Kevin Bowler has decided to leave the national tourism promotion agency.
His last day at TNZ takes place on October 28. He will then move on to head Auckland-based Frucor Beverages in November.
Prior to joining TNZ in 2010, Bowler filled various non-tourism roles. He was CEO of Yahoo!, general manager consumer marketing at Telecom, and was also in the food and dairy industries.
Under his leadership, tourism in New Zealand has seen strong growth. The country’s prime minister John Key said traffic had been rising rapidly with total international arrivals to New Zealand in the year ending May 2016 standing at 3.3 million, with Australia and China the top source markets. This number is expected to rise to four million within four years.
TNZ most recently in July launched a global marketing campaign with acclaimed Hollywood director James Cameron to further leverage the country’s successes with film tourism.
An executive recruitment agency will be hired to search for Bowler’s replacement.
