Rob Sterling Named Director of Sales & Marketing for the Grand Del Mar

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. October 14, 2008

SAN DIEGO, CA, August 9, 2005. If the name Rob Stirling rings a bell, don't be surprised. Rob Stirling has earned a reputation among hospitality and tourism professionals, corporate meeting planners, special events coordinators and discerning travelers seeking the awe-inspiring hotel experience. If his name is not mentioned directly, his management style, attention to detail, applied marketing, and training he has imparted to his personnel have influenced and enhanced his hotel and meeting guests and clients' appreciation of the finer things in life. If their experience was memorable, he'd done his job. His concern is always that the clients appreciate the quality of their experience, and share that knowledge with others seeking the same. Eventually, his name comes into play, and then the bells ring loudly.

Tom Voss, Managing Director of Manchester Grand Resorts, knew Rob's name well. He'd known Rob Stirling both professionally and personally for many years. Over the past two months, Voss, formerly the general manager of downtown San Diego's Manchester Grand Hyatt, looked out at the broad expanse offered by his office on the 33rd floor headquarters of Manchester Grand Resorts, wondering how far beyond San Diego he would have to look to find his marketing-savvy new colleague for The Grand Del Mar Resort and Spa, the new luxury resort hotel and spa being built on the site of The Grand Golf Club in Del Mar, California. With a scheduled opening of January 2007, the challenge before him was to find a marketing and sales expert who could apply the required skills and ensure a successful opening. He needed a high-energy, well-connected and experienced person to fill this void, one that could share the vision, set the style and identify the brand for the future.

His search soon landed upon Stirling, who by all indications was well-entrenched and enjoying success as the Director of Sales and Marketing at W San Diego, the first style hotel in San Diego opening in December 2002.

Voss, whose recruiting efforts included interviews with potential candidates at some of the leading resorts in America and other countries, found his man just down the street. Stirling was up for the challenges presented by The Grand Del Mar Resort & Spa soon to be under construction on the site of The Grand Golf Club. Voss locked onto him in early June and announced his hire as The Grand Del Mar Resort & Spa's first Director of Sales & Marketing.

"We are very fortunate to find someone with Rob's background and experience to direct the sales and marketing efforts for The Grand Del Mar Resort & Spa," said Voss. "Rob's frame of reference on marketing hotel properties prior to opening made him the obvious choice. His focus and creativity in branding and creating awareness of this major resort as it moves towards completion, will give us a head start on achieving the success we expect at opening." A San Diego hospitality-marketing veteran, Stirling has served as Director of Sales & Marketing at two local hotel properties. "That gave him a huge advantage over bringing in somebody from another market," added Voss.

Prior to his tenure with Starwood Hotels' W San Diego, where he faced a similar challenge of implementing marketing for a yet to open hotel, Stirling had served for 13 years with Hyatt Hotels Corporation, including stints in sales and marketing at the Hyatt Regency Chesapeake Bay Golf Resort, Spa and Marina, the Hyatt Regency La Jolla, the Hyatt Regency Dallas and the Hyatt Regency DFW.

While Stirling has enjoyed traveling and working in other cities, he now prefers his challenges locally, where he resides with his wife and three children in North County. He graduated from East Stroudsburg University in Pennsylvania, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in hospitality management.