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PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
Contact: Debra Kelman 212-794-DKPR (3577)
dkelman@dkpr.com
NATION’S PREMIER TRAVEL AND TOURISM ORGANIZATION ANNOUNCES
NEW MEMBERS
TRAVEL BUSINESS ROUNDTABLE’S NEW MEMBERS ARE AS DIVERSE
AS THE INDUSTRY ITSELF
WASHINGTON, D.C. - July 11, 2000 -- The Travel
Business Roundtable (TBR), a coalition of 60 CEO’s
representing all sectors of the travel industry whose mission
is to educate elected officials on the important contributions
travel and tourism makes to the nation’s economy, has
announced four new members.
These include Robert S. Taubman, President and CEO of
Taubman Centers, Inc.; Jeff Wasson, Co-CEO of TravelNow.com;
Larry Alexander, President and CEO of the Detroit Metro Convention
and Visitors Bureau; and Jacob L. Coin, Executive
Director of the National Indian Gaming Association (NIGA).
Taubman Centers, Inc.
As one of the preeminent retail developers/owners/ managers
in the United States for the past 50 years, Taubman Centers,
Inc. is a real estate investment trust that acquires, operates,
and develops regional shopping centers. Currently, the company
owns and/or manages 27 urban and suburban regional and super
regional shopping centers in 12 states. Headquartered in Bloomfield
Hills, Michigan, the company’s properties are located
primarily in Michigan and also in California.
Demonstrating the powerful connection between shopping and
travel, the company recently announced the creation of the
first ever "World Class Shopping
University," a progressive shopping and tourism
course of study for the travel industry. Designed as a fun
and educational experience, the non-accredited World Class
Shopping "U" will familiarize travel industry professionals
with the diverse and exciting tourism opportunities that shopping
centers offer.
More information is available at the company’s website,
at www.taubman.com.
TravelNow.com
Launched in March 1995 as the first independent hotel reservation
service on the Internet, TravelNow.com now includes on-line
booking services for hotels, cruise lines, airlines, rail
passes, and rental car companies.
With more than 40,000 hotel rooms in 8,000 cities worldwide,
TravelNow.com was recently voted by users to be the easiest
and most comprehensive hotel reservation site on the Internet.
In addition to being able to provide reservations for individuals,
TravelNow.com also offers assistance for groups of 20 or more
people. For more information or to make reservations for groups
or individuals, visit www.travelnow.com.
Detroit Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau
With travel and tourism ranked as the city’s second
largest industry, the Detroit Metro Convention and Visitors
Bureau (DMCVB) is a nonprofit organization promoting metro
Detroit as a convention and visitor destination. The DMCVB
is the only organization that promotes Detroit regionally,
nationally and internationally as a desirable location for
conventions, tradeshows, corporate meetings and tourism.
TBR’s membership roster also includes representatives
from convention and visitors bureaus in Los Angeles, Miami,
Las Vegas and New York City.
The National Indian Gaming Association,
Established in 1985, the National Indian Gaming Association
(NIGA), is a non-profit organization of 168 Indian Nations
with other non-voting associate members representing organizations,
tribes and businesses engaged in tribal gaming enterprises
from around the country.
And, while NIGA operates as a clearinghouse and educational,
legislative and public policy resource for tribes, policymakers
and the public on Indian gaming issues and tribal community
development, its overall mission and purpose is to advance
the lives of Indian peoples - economically, socially and politically,
and to protect and preserve the general welfare of tribes
striving for self-sufficiency through gaming enterprises in
Indian Country.
To fulfill its mission, NIGA works with the Federal government
and Congress to develop sound policies and practices and to
provide technical assistance and advocacy on gaming-related
issues. In addition, NIGA seeks to maintain and protect Indian
sovereign governmental authority in Indian Country.
"The addition of these four new members is representative
of the growth and diversity of the travel and tourism industry,"
notes Jonathan Tisch, President and CEO of Loews Hotels and
Chairman of the Travel Business Roundtable. "TravelNow.com
demonstrates the growth of the on-line travel and tourism
industry, which is expected to generate more than 16 million
bookings this year; while a real estate company specializing
in shopping center development underscores the important role
shopping plays in the industry as the number one activity
for domestic and international travelers alike. We’re
also very pleased to be adding another convention and visitors
bureau to our membership, as it reflects how important travel
and tourism is to the nation’s major cities where it
is the first, second or third largest industry. And, the NIGA’s
presence on the TBR roster underscores the growth and popularity
of gaming resorts and destinations throughout the country."
The Travel Business Roundtable is a coalition of more
than 60 CEO’s representing all sectors of the travel
and tourism industry. In addition to the major airlines, car
rental companies, travel management agencies, hotel chains,
TBR’s membership roster also includes companies such
as The Coca-Cola Company, USA Today, and the International
Council of Shopping Centers, demonstrating the broad scope
and diversity the industry represents.
Chaired by Jonathan Tisch, President and CEO of Loews Hotels,
TBR’s mission is to educate elected officials on all
levels of government on the important contributions the travel
and tourism industry makes to the nation’s economy. Among
the issues it is currently addressing include full restoration
of the business meals deduction, welfare to work tax credits,
elimination of taxes on frequent flyer miles, and opposition
to an increase in the minimum wage.
Projected to be the world’s largest industry within
the next decade, travel and tourism is the nation’s third
largest retail industry and second largest employer with more
than 17million Americans employed directly or indirectly in
travel and tourism. As America’s leading services export,
travel and tourism created a trade surplus of nearly $12 billion
in 1999, generating $82 billion of tax revenue and $541 billion
in total expenditures.
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