Intrepid Travel has appointed Tom Smith as general manager, North America, bringing more senior leadership, vision and strategic growth to the continent.
Smith moves to North America following seven years in various senior commercial, marketing and general management roles within the Intrepid business globally. Serving the role of marketing director in the U.K., he moved to become general manager of Intrepid’s DMC in Peru. Later, he held the position of regional general manager for Intrepid’s network of DMCs across Europe, Middle East and Africa.
Prior to joining Intrepid, Smith worked in the tourism sector in Australia and Morocco. He brings a wealth of leadership experience from tourism and other industries. Based in the company’s Toronto office, Smith will be responsible for driving Intrepid’s commercial success in North America, implementing strategic plans, managing day-to-day operations and growing the Intrepid brand.
“My time at Intrepid has opened my eyes to a more sustainable, inclusive way to travel, and I’m incredibly excited to grow that segment of the travel industry here in North America,” said Smith. “Having worked with our teams on the ground, I have seen first-hand how important sustainable income from tourism is to our local staff, the communities we partner with, and the suppliers we work with.”
Smith will report to Matt Berna, North American managing director, who oversees sales and marketing, operations, mergers and acquisitions, and strategic growth in the Americas. “I’m incredibly excited to have Tom join the North American team,” said Berna. “Our old notion of regional offices being classified as an operating office (DMC) or a sales office, or even service centers, no longer fits our current business model. Tom’s role will support our global structure and vertically integrated operations.”
Intrepid Travel operates in 130-plus countries with 40 offices globally. In 2022, Intrepid DMC opened its first operations base in North America off the back of its acquisition of Wildland Trekking, a specialist adventure operator. Intrepid’s U.S. portfolio includes more than 200 itineraries.
“As we continue our rapid expansion, we have been reviewing how our organizational structure should evolve to better reflect our current and future growth opportunities,” said James Thornton, CEO of Intrepid. “The more we grow, the more we can invest in purpose activities and create more value for all stakeholders.”
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