Explore St. Louis named a 30-year sales and marketing veteran as its new chief sales officer.
David Duncan’s position, effective July 18, will be to ensure that St. Louis continually attracts meetings and conventions, with key efforts focused on positioning AC Next Gen, the expansion and enhancement of America’s Center, as a top-tier facility for national-level gatherings.
“After an extensive national search with the assistance of our board of commissioners, we are excited to have David take on this role,” said Kathleen “Kitty” Ratcliffe, president of Explore St. Louis. “He complements our strong performance-oriented culture, and we believe his leadership and demonstrated track record of execution and achieving results makes him the right choice to lead our national sales efforts.”
Acting vice president of sales, Eric Janecke, who has been part of the Explore St. Louis team since 2019 and helped guide the organization through the highly challenging pandemic, will remain in place during Duncan’s transition into the chief sales officer role.
Duncan has long been a veteran in the St. Louis hotel industry and is excited by the city’s current growth trajectory. “Timing is everything. I now have my dream job in my favorite city on the planet,” Duncan said. “It’s an exciting time to be in St. Louis with all the new attractions, awesome airlift and the expansion of America’s Center. It’s truly an amazing feeling to be back in St. Louis and be a part of selling the city’s next chapter.”
Prior to his role with Explore St. Louis, Duncan worked as director of sales and marketing at the Sheraton Grand Nashville Downtown and served as a board member for the Nashville Convention and Visitors Corps. He has also served in several leadership and management roles with various hospitality groups nation-wide including Marriott International, JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort and Spa, Renaissance SeaWorld Orlando and Hilton St. Louis at the Ballpark.
Read more recent moves and appointments in the hospitality industry.
