BHTA has new board of directors

The Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA) has elected a new board of directors, which will serve for the period 2021–2022.

The board, which is led by Chairman Geoffrey Roach, has as its new Chairman-elect and First Vice-Chairman, Renee Coppin, General Manager of the Pirates Inn Hotel and the Infinity on the Beach Hotel.

Other members include Second Vice-Chairman Mark Kent, Director of Finance Jo-Ann Roett and Director of Direct Tourism Services (DTS) Kavita Sandiford.

The board also consists of category leaders. They are Karen Capaldi, chairperson of luxury category; Leroy Browne, Chairperson of the A-Class category; Rod Weatherhead, Chairperson of B-Class and Apartments; Tania Wallace, Chairperson of vacation rental property management companies; and Alfredo Giovine, representative of DTS. The BHTA has retained PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) as its auditor for the next financial year.

The decisions were made last Wednesday during the association’s annual general meeting, which was held online for the second year.

For the financial year ending December 31, 2020, the BHTA recorded a minor surplus of two per cent or $18,000, when compared to a loss of one per cent or 15,000 in 2019.

Income for the association was down 28 per cent as a result of reduced funding coming in from members who have been devastated by the pandemic.

Expenditure was also down 31 per cent, due mainly to reduced staff cost and a reduction in public relations and advertising.