JoAnn Kurtz-Ahlers

Founder and President

JoAnn Kurtz-Ahlers established Kurtz-Ahlers & Associates in 2002, after two decades of experience as an industry-leading Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Ritz-Carlton, where she was the first female ever to attain this position. During her tenure she oversaw business development worldwide, including new and existing properties in Dubai, Spain, Egypt, Qatar and Turkey.

An active promoter of the hospitality industry and past chairman of the Meeting Planners International (MPI) Editorial Committee, JoAnn has participated as a frequent panelist at industry conferences, and continues to be an active leader within MPI. She has twice been named one of the “100 Most Powerful Women in Travel” by Travel Agent magazine, and was selected as one of Meeting News’ “25 Most Influential People.”

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Beth Allen

Sales Consultant

Beth Allen began her hospitality career 20 years ago in Chicago, where she held various positions at Hotel Nikko and the Four Seasons. She relocated to Atlanta in 1995 and began her tenure with Ritz-Carlton. She worked for several different properties during almost 10 years with the company in Atlanta, Miami, and with Ritz-Carlton hotels in the Caribbean & Mexico. Most recently she held the position of Area Director of Sales & Marketing for the recently formed hotel brand, TWELVE Hotels & Residences, where she was responsible for development of all sales and reservations policies and procedures, contributed to website development, formulated sales strategies and established the company's volume and corporate accounts.

Beth’s sales experience has been focused in the transient market, in both the corporate and leisure segments. She is active in several organizations including Executive Women International, Georgia Business Travel Association, Pace Cetters, and Atlanta's High Museum.

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Dawn Bilawa

Sales Consultant

Dawn has held several positions in sales and marketing over the past six years, and started her career at Ritz-Carlton. She has completed successful assignments in Phoenix, at The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel, and The Ritz-Carlton, Lake Las Vegas. Her focus over this period has been the luxury travel industry market in Southern California and the southwest United States. Dawn joins the team focused on Texas and Chicago, as well as handling parts of the West Coast. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from DePaul University in Chicago.

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Sandy Blake

Project Director

Sandy Blake joined Ritz-Carlton in 1996 as the Corporate Key Account and Tradeshow Manager. She worked directly with the executive committee, world-wide hotel staff, and international sales offices, to establish select client relationships in all travel markets. Her principal focus was organizing tradeshows, road shows, client entertainment functions, and various special events. She developed strong relationships within the association and travel industry markets, including corporation affiliates throughout the United States.

Since 2002, she has been the Project Director for Kurtz-Ahlers & Associates, managing activities to coincide with direct sales efforts on a tactical and strategical basis for exclusive resorts, hotels, airlines and associations worldwide.

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Becky Brown

Marketing Consultant

Becky has held several positions in sales, marketing and hospitality over the past ten years.

Now residing in Sun Valley, Idaho, Becky worked for the Sun Valley Company, opened and operated a successful restaurant, and most recently, became Program Director at Andrew Harper, Inc. She successfully coordinated the production of several publications, including Andrew Harper's Q Club and the Q Club Report.

A media major from the University of San Diego, Becky brings copy and production skills, sales experience, and relationships with professionals in the luxury market. Becky oversees strategic projects, including market research, marketing programs, initiatives, and promotions.

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Jolene Detillion

Sales Consultant

Jolene Detillion began her hospitality career nearly 20 years ago in Hawaii at the Westin Maui where she held various positions in both operations and sales & marketing. Over the course of her career she has worked in all markets segments from transient to group, corporate and leisure in the high-end luxury hotel industry, with companies such as Shangri-La Hotels & Resorts, The Plaza Hotel, Four Seasons and Rosewood Hotels & Resorts.

She joins Kurtz-Ahlers & Associates after spending her last four years at The Rocco Forte Collection where she held the position of Director of Sales, North America in their New York sales office and subsequently opening a West Coast office for this luxury European hotel company.

Jolene resides in Seattle with her husband and oversees accounts in the West from Northern California up through Western Canada and Colorado. Jolene is an active member of the Society of Incentive Travel Executives as well as Seattle’s Fran Nordstrom / Children’s Hospital Guild.

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Jennifer Deutsch

President, Brand Insights

Jennifer Deutsch is President of Brand Insights, a marketing consulting firm whose clients compete in the travel, hospitality, food, home furnishing, cellular communication, and retail grocery categories. She is a frequent speaker on branding, and in 2002 co-authored a book on the subject commissioned by the Michigan Museum Association. The book, Just Who Do Your Customers Think You Are?, is a complete guide to branding.

Jennifer served as Vice President of Brand Management for Marriott International, where she created a portfolio management system for the company’s ten lodging brands. That initiative included the creation of the Marriott brand identity system, and the development of a long-term marketing strategy for Marriott International. She also led the branding initiative for a new and very exciting Marriott brand: Bulgari Hotels & Resorts.

At Renaissance Hotels and Resorts, which was acquired by Marriott in April 1997, she served as Vice President of Marketing. In that capacity, she engineered the repositioning of the Renaissance Hotels and Resorts brand with the goal of increased brand awareness and market share.

Just prior to establishing Brand Insights, Jennifer was Vice President of Marketing at Third Federal Savings where she oversaw the development of all advertising creative including the “Voice of Reason” campaign which was awarded two gold Addies in 2001.

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Judi Halperin

Marketing Consultant

Judi Halperin joined Kurtz-Ahlers & Associates in November of 2006 as a Marketing Consultant, after relocating to Maryland. Prior to that time, she spent seven years working in hotel catering and sales for Ritz-Carlton, and was previously based in Atlanta.

Judi is a Hospitality Management major from Florida International University and prior to joining Kurtz-Ahlers & Associates, managed a successful business. Judi's marketing and management experience are well suited to the Kurtz-Ahlers team, where she coordinates travel and marketing efforts and oversees special events.

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Justine Mastin

Sales & Marketing – United Kingdom

Justine Mastin has over 20 years experience in luxury travel, and heads our sales and marketing office in the United Kingdom from her base in Cambridge. During her career, Justine has garnered experience with tour operators, sales and marketing accounts, event management, and budget planning.

Justine began her hospitality career at Thomas Cook Holidays, where she held various positions over a 14 year span, including that of Sales and Marketing Manager. She then headed up the UK and Ireland sales and marketing office for Jebel Ali International Hotels in the UK, prior to taking up the position of Director of Marketing, based in Dubai. While in Dubai, Justine transferred to The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company as the Regional Director of Travel Industry Sales for the Middle East.

In May of 2005, Justine returned to London for Ritz-Carlton as the Director of Travel Industry Sales. Her knowledge of the hotel industry, tour operating and international luxury markets, along with her strong personal relationships in the region, will be instrumental in translating the Kurtz-Ahlers vision throughout the UK.

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Mary McManus

Sales Consultant

Mary McManus is a hotel industry sales and marketing executive with over 25 years experience in the luxury market, including New York City hotels, Caribbean resorts and destination spas. Mary's passion for spas, as realized by her long tenure at Miraval and her recent launch of the Mayflower Spa, and for luxury products, international destinations, and service ethics, completely matches the Kurtz-Ahlers vision.

Mary has joined us to further represent our clients in the Northeast. Mary resides in New York City with her husband and two sons.

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Miki Mitrovich

Special Projects

Miki Mitrovich has three years of proven leadership experience as Director of Sales at Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts, and over 10 years as Regional Sales Manager at Ritz-Carlton, where she successfully developed US group markets in the west and northeastern U.S. Miki has outstanding sales abilities as evidenced by her long history of consistently exceeding production goals and by dramatically expanding her assigned markets. She possess an in-depth knowledge of specific purchasing requirements for different market segments including group, business travel, wholesale, and retail/leisure travel. With over 13 years of experience in the luxury market, Miki’s expertise is unmatched.

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Tere Neuhausel

Sales Consultant

Tere has joined Kurtz-Ahlers & Associates to assist in managing the California market. Born in China and raised in Iran, Tere is very well-traveled, and recently toured much of Asia with her family. Tere is a very creative and organized individual who brings a variety of skills the Kurtz-Ahlers team.

Tere has had a successful career in sales and marketing in the pharmaceutical industry, as well as a five year career as an elementary school teacher. Tere graduated from Eastern Illinois University with a B.S in Education and now resides in Southern California with her husband and two young children.

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Farimah Parang

Sales Consultant

Farimah Parang draws upon over 20 years of experience in the hospitality industry, of which 12 years have been working with Ritz-Carlton. During her tenure there she has held numerous positions in travel agency sales and marketing. As a result, she has established strong, personal relationships with key travel agencies and wholesalers throughout the western United States, priceless assets in an industry where relationships are the key to success.

Farimah has been an active participant in major travel industry associations such as ASTA & ICTA. Before her career with Ritz-Carlton she held the position of Director of Hotel and Travel Agency Sales at Hertz France in Paris.

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Dan Reid

Hospitality Business Development

Dan comes from Six Senses, where he was Managing Director Americas, and was then appointed Chief Operating Officer in 2005 where his core duties included overseeing the operational aspects of the Six Senses resort and spa portfolio. He returned to the Americas in 2008 as Chief Regional Advisor, Americas & Pacific to focus on Six Senses’ development in the region.

Prior to joining Six Senses Group in 2004, Dan was Director Lodge Operations for Waiau Bay Farms - a New Zealand-based group comprising a luxury lodge, wineries, golf course and sheep station, plus lodge development plans in Australia and New Zealand. Dan’s professional record includes CEO of Island Outpost Hotels, a six-year tenure with Aman resorts as GM of Amanpulo Resort in the Philippines, and GM and AM of Aman resorts Indonesia at Amanusa Resort in Nusa Dua Bali.

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Karina Vilanova

Sales & Marketing – Latin America

Karina Vilanova heads our sales and marketing office in Latin America from her base in Buenos Aires. She has been in the hospitality industry since 1991 after graduating with a BS in Hotel Management from Florida International University in Miami.

Karina started her career with Occidental Hotels in the south of Spain, and after two years joined Hyatt International where she held a variety of positions over an eight-year period. Since then she has worked for Hyatt Regency in Paris, Istanbul, Casablanca, Paris, and Madrid. Her last position with Hyatt was in the international sales office in Chicago, where as Director of Sales she was responsible for promoting and positioning all 86 international properties in the tour and travel, incentive, and corporate markets.

In 1999 Karina was transferred to Buenos Aires, where she has been ever since, except for a stint opening a Relais & Chateaux property on the Uruguayan coast. For the last four years, she has been representing and promoting hotels in Argentina and Brazil, as well as providing consulting services for new ventures and ongoing projects.

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