Celebrity Cruises promotes Giles Hawke from his position as Vice President and Managing Director of EMEA to assume the role of International Vice President, with responsibility for all regions outside of North America.
The newly created position establishes a management structure similar to that of its sister company, Royal Caribbean International, with Hawke assuming the role 17 months after joining Celebrity Cruises from Cosmos, Globus and Avalon Waterways.
Claire Stirrup, formerly senior sales director for EMEA, has been promoted to managing director for the UK and EMEA, one year after her responsibilities were expanded as part of a team restructuring. Stirrup has been with Royal Caribbean Group for 11 years, the last 10 with Celebrity Cruises, and has served as sales director for the past eight years. Previously, she was a commercial and regional sales manager at TUI.
Stirrup commented: “As part of a new team structure to meet the evolving needs of the business, Giles has been promoted to the new position of International Vice President, overseeing our global strategy. He will be responsible for the APAC region, including Australia, Latin America, the Caribbean, Mexico, and the UK and EMEA markets.”
Hawke, who will continue to report to Celebrity Cruises President Laura Hodges Bethge, added: “The idea is to have a more cohesive global approach. Up until now, each market or region has operated quite independently, so now we are establishing a more integrated strategy that aligns with the development and growth of the brand.”
In his new role, he will oversee existing international offices and regions, as well as explore new opportunities globally.
Stirrup confirmed she will fill her previous role as sales director: “We are actively recruiting for a sales director, starting with an internal search as we usually do with most vacancies, but also considering external options.”
From now on, the sales, marketing and commercial functions will report to Stirrup, who will continue to report to Hawke.
Stirrup highlighted the evolution of Celebrity Cruises:
“With all the recent announcements, it’s an incredibly exciting time. Xcel is on its way and we’ve announced another Edge-class ship, so the brand continues to strengthen and we’re in a great position to support this growth.”
These promotions come a month after Royal Caribbean Group, Celebrity's parent company, signed an agreement to order a sixth Edge-class ship, due for delivery in 2028. It will be the sister ship to Celebrity Xcel, which is due to enter service later this year.
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