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Today, Rachael Harding has been announced as the newlyappointed General Manager for Club Med Australia and New Zealand.
Harding brings award-winning industry experience and expertise to the role, having worked with The Travel Corporation over the past 15 years on brands including Contiki and Trafalgar Travel.

Throughout her decade and a half in the industry she’s worked within the wholesale, retail and corporate markets in Australia and internationally with market-leading brands, high-end luxury organisations and boutique operators. Most recently, Harding received three nominations at the 2018 Women in Travel Awards and took home the win for Sales Woman of the Year.

“We’re pleased to welcome such a well-recognised travel professional to lead the growth of Club Med in the Pacific as the company expands its portfolio across the region and globally. Rachael’s passion for the brand and her industry experience made her the perfect candidate for this role,” says Xavier Desaulles, CEO East & South Asia and Pacific.

Since the company’s takeover by Chinese conglomerate, Fosun, in 2015, Club Med has seen record growth and profitability, more specifically 6.6 per cent increase year-on-year in customers. This is the result of the successful strategy implemented with Fosun’s support to accelerate the opening of new Premium to Luxury beach and ski resorts all across the globe and keep innovating to deliver an exceptional client experience.

In Australia and New Zealand, Club Med has seen a 50 per cent growth over the past three years, which it looks to continue to accelerate in the coming seasons. The successful opening of Club Med’s newest ski resort in Japan, Club Med Tomamu, as well as the opening of the first 5-Trident resort in the Mediterranean, Club Med Cefalu, Sicily, have contributed to this growth, which forms part of Club Med’s international development strategy. Announced earlier this year, the strategy outlines Club Med’s ambition to open three to five resorts globally each year by 2020.

These are exciting times for the Club Med business and Harding is committed to help drive this growth trajectory. Harding will commence her new role on Monday 20 August 2018.