New Orleans’ Incoming Tourism Chief Eyes International Marketing Shift
Photo Credit: New Orleans is getting a new tourism chief who wants a more direct-to-consumer marketing strategy Unsplash / Kristina Volgenau
Skift Take
New Orleans & Company incoming president and CEO Walter Leger's embrace of new age marketing tactics and technology, as well as his political experience, signal changes are coming to the Big Easy.
New Orleans & Company will have a new president and CEO on January 1. Walt Leger III will be replacing Stephen Perry, who has been in the role for 20 years. He wants the destination marketing organization to embrace a more direct-to-consumer strategy and take more risks with emerging technologies.
A lawyer by trade, he served in the Louisiana House of Representatives for 12 years, six of which he was as speaker pro tempore. He joined New Orleans & Company in 2019 as general counsel and as executive vice president of strategic affairs. He was appointed last December by the board to succeed Perry.
In this conversation with Skift, Leger talks about New Orleans’ recovery, his direct-to-consumer marketing strategy, the city's relationship with international markets, why his legislative experience will be useful in today’s political climate and how New Orleans will be resilient against the next Katrina. The comments have been edited for length and cl
