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New GSWS chair to be announced at 2nd anniversary event

18 Jun 2012

Today is an important date on the calendar of Glasgow Service with Style, as the initiative marks its second anniversary. Having delivered exceptional results in just two years, the anniversary event will welcome almost 200 guests and supporters of GSWS. This evening, which is held at The Lighthouse in Glasgow and attended by Fergus Ewing MSP, Minister for Energy, Enterprise and Tourism, also offers the ideal opportunity to make a landmark announcement, welcoming new chairman Ben Goedegebuure.

Ben Goedegebuure, who is Sales Director at the SECC, will replace Graeme Gibson, the General Manager at the Radisson in Glasgow. 

Ben is a senior and influential figure in the Glasgow tourism industry and has worked with the SECC since 2005, joining as Director of Conferences in charge of the conference sales team. He is currently involved in the building of the Hydro Arena, which is set to become Scotland’s new home of live entertainment and will house up to 13,000 spectators when it opens next year. We very much look forward to working with Ben on Glasgow Service with Style, and we thank Graeme for all his support so far.

Anniversary event for GSWS

As an Official Legacy Project for the 2014 Commonwealth Games, the GSWS initiative has been very keenly involved in helping to gear up the city's tourism and hospitality industry to maximise this huge sporting opportunity and also the Olympic Games events taking place in Glasgow this summer.

The achievements of GSWS since its launch in May 2010 will be announced tonight at the special event, which is to be hosted by BBC's Bill Whiteford. This will also be an opportunity to showcase best practice in service excellence.

Warm welcome to guest speaker Rene Angoujard

The evening will welcome Rene Angoujard, who is General Manager of Pullman Paris Tour Eiffel Hotel and one of Europe’s leading service turnaround specialists. Rene will share his vast experience with the audience at the event.

An innovative, financially astute and dedicated industry professional, Rene is known for his “on the floor” management and strong leadership.  Having worked across different brands in nine countries, Rene is passionate about service and staff development and will share his approach to creating excellence, customer satisfaction and profitability in business.

Yesterday, Tourism Minister Fergus Ewing said: “Tourism is one of our most dynamic industry sectors and there are many exciting opportunities coming up where we can showcase our warm welcome to the world, the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in 2014 being one of these.

"The Glasgow Service with Style initiative is an excellent way to encourage young people to get involved in all aspects of tourism and make sure that they have the skills they need to build a successful career.”

Ewing went on to praise the appointment of Ben Goedegebuure as the new chairman. He said: “I am sure Ben will continue the good work that has been going on in this area to ensure that our reputation for excellence continues for years to come."

The new Chair himself said: "Service remains an absolute priority in any hospitality business and I believe in Glasgow's collective ability to provide a warm and professional welcome to our visitors.

“As Chair of Glasgow Service with Style, I'm committed to raising awareness of the importance this city puts in quality customer service, and celebrate the fine examples we have here of genuine service excellence."

The formal part of the GSWS anniversary evening will commence at 6pm and will close at 7.15pm for a networking drinks reception. To register, please click here or call Starkevents on  0141 357 2235.

We are delighted that the 2012 event will be sponsored by Cordia and Encore Hospitality Services.