The powerhouse, who is Maureen Barnes-Smith, VP of Sales & Marketing, Unique Vacations Canada, is celebrating 30 years of building the Sandals and Beaches Resorts brands.
When not engaged with Canada’s travel trade, Barnes-Smith supports women in business in achieving their goals by setting an example of a powerful female leader.
At Air Canada Vacations’ annual Women in Business lunch on 04APR, Barnes-Smith gave a passionate speech about the challenges and inherent biases women still face in achieving their professional goals.
Since joining Unique Vacations in September 1994 as the first office manager in the Canadian office, she has held various roles, including operations, sales, and marketing.
In 2009, Barnes-Smith assumed the leadership role of director of Sales & Marketing, which she held for over a decade before her promotion to vice president in March 2021.
In an email to Open Jaw, Maureen said “I feel like I just started. It’s been an amazing journey and I look forward to a few more productive years with continued focus on growth in Canada.”
“For three decades, the team at Unique Vacations Canada – and dare I say, the wider Canadian travel industry – has benefitted from Maureen’s integrity and honesty, her strategic vision, her steady hand and her sense of Caribbean pride,” says Gary C. Sadler, OD, EVP, Sales & Industry Relations, Unique Vacations Inc.
“Her ability to have frank conversations in her trademark sincere, forthright manner has served her well, whether she’s dealing with senior level executives or frontline retail partners. Without a doubt, Maureen has shaped the identity of Unique Vacations Canada and mentored so many over the years, myself included.”
