Yesterday, in a keynote address, Bob Sartor, President and CEO of The Calgary Airport Authority, shared YYC’s strategic direction, North Star and evolved brand with our first group of industry stakeholders. We were joined by more than 80 internal stakeholders from government, community, and travel and tourism partner organizations, who eagerly listened as Bob walked them through the exciting changes and the new direction we’re taking.
“This whole concept of going from passenger to guest is very intriguing, because in the hospitality industry we know how important that guest experience is and how it changes a thought process and thinking so just that one shift is huge,” said Cindy Ady, President and CEO of Tourism Calgary.“ [YYC] is a place where [nearly] 17 million a year people pass through, so the opportunities for marketing using new digital technologies is also very exciting. I think it’s very forward thinking and its going to carry through into the future.”
As part of the presentation, it was important to bring this to life showing the incredible work our YYC Crew is doing. A number of booths were showcased that included everything from facial recognition, to future check-in counters and even opportunities to see how routes are selected and brought to Calgary.
“The event was very inspiring: from the video, the imagery and the use of this space,” said Shelley, Zucht-Shorter, Vice President of Industry Relations at Tourism Calgary. I feel like I can see [YYC’s] vision of future, and I’m excited about it because it’s right in line with where we’re going at Tourism Calgary.”
"Just attended the @FlyYYC Future launch. Aspirational nature of YYC Future is refreshing and forward looking. We need more conversations like this. I congratulate Bob Sartor and his team on the work they have done," said Sandip Lalli, President and CEO of the Calgary Chamber of Commerce, in a tweet.
Some of the new information attendees were excited to learn about were: our new approach to retail and service offerings; improvements to airport processes; enhancements to the domestic terminal; and how we’re leveraging the entire campus development plan to fuel Calgary’s economic prosperity.
Read the full press release here.