Brand USA Board Members Fired by Commerce Department

The U.S. Commerce Department under Secretary Howard Lutnick abruptly fired five of the 11 board members of Brand USA, the nation’s destination marketing organization, last week. 

It seems even the nation’s DMO isn’t immune to the administration's staffing cuts. 

According to Travel Weekly, our sister publication, Destination DC CEO and Brand USA board chair Elliott Ferguson was fired just a few months into a one-year term that began in December. 

Also fired were Allen Orr, Brand USA’s board secretary and founder of law firm Orr Immigration; Lauren Bailey, the board’s vice chair and CEO and co-founder of Upward Projects, a restaurant and hospitality development company; the board’s treasurer, Kristen Esposito, who is a principal at tourism marketing consultancy Esposito Global Partners; and Tim Mapes, Delta’s chief marketing and communications officer. 

Brand USA did not comment on the removal of the five board members. The Commerce Department is Brand USA’s appointing authority. 

The 11-person board also included Gus Antorcha, president of Princess Cruises; Danny Hughes, president of the Americas region for Hilton; and Stephanie Young, President of Disney Vacation Club, Adventures & Expeditions. 

A Commerce Department spokesperson responded to Travel Weekly’s request for information, saying, "Pursuant to the Brand USA bylaws, the service of five members of the board of directors has ended. The Department of Commerce thanks them for their service and looks forward to bringing the best and brightest leaders to the Brand USA board to grow travel and tourism across the United States."

Marketing the United States to international travelers has been made more challenging recently due to the Trump Administration’s worsening trade war, which is sparking fears of a global recession and cooling the travel boom that’s been spurring the industry’s growth since the end of the pandemic, along with his increasingly strict border policies and inflammatory comments about making Canada the 51st state. 

International arrivals to the United States dropped 11 percent in March from last year; Canadian visitation has dropped even more, putting thousands of American jobs and billions of tourism revenue at risk. 

And a survey conducted by the Adventure Travel Trade Association found that 81 percent of tour operators are already seeing a decline in revenue this year. 

Donald Trump, for his part, recently told reporters that “It’s not a big deal.”  

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