MSC Cruises has appointed two new regional sales managers.
Two former Thomson staff members will take on the newly created roles at the beginning of April which will take the team from 12 to 14.
Claire Smith previously worked as a cruise expert at Thomson and will cover Scotland, the north east and Northern Ireland.
Luke Vanderhoeven will be the regional sales manager for Wales and the south west and also previously worked at Thomson in its cruise commercial team.
Since the arrival of director of sales Steve Williams in October the sales team has grown from six to 14, with these two new positions being the first ‘on the road’ roles for their respective areas.
Williams said: “We are absolutely delighted to have Luke and Claire join our team to further develop MSC cruises on the high street as we embark on a period of rapid expansion.
“They will be instrumental in supporting, developing and training our trade partners in their respective geographical regions.
“Both have an exceptional background in high street retail travel so will really understand the needs of our partners and work with them closely to grow their MSC cruise business.”
The cruise line said Smith’s role will complement the recent hire of Colin Rillie in October, as national account manager in the same region.
They will both start their new roles at the beginning of April and will report into head of retail Andrea Stafford who joined the company in November.
UK managing director Antonio Paradiso said: “Luke and Claire’s appointments further show MSC’s commitment to our trade partners in helping them understand the brand and ultimately grow their business.”