Celestyal Cruises is delighted to announce the appointment of Leslie Peden as President, North America and Wan Wang as Sales Executive, China. Peden will be responsible for driving business growth and promoting Celestyal Cruises in North America, and Wang has been tasked with enhancing the company’s presence and brand in China.
Peden is a highly-experienced, time-honored travel professional with 30+ years of success in cruising, tour operations, air and rail travel, including a proven track record serving in senior management and executive roles for such acclaimed cruise companies as Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, Virgin Holidays Cruises and Island Cruises.
A British national, Peden held full P&L responsibility for Virgin Holidays Cruises and the integration of this business unit into the wider Virgin Travel Group. Among his many accomplishments while at Virgin, he developed and executed Virgin Holidays Cruises’ first fully-integrated marketing campaign with the launch of a new dedicated cruise brochure, press creative and the business entity’s first-ever national TV, digital and social media campaign.
“We are excited to bring Mr. Peden on board. He is an industry standout and an innovator who brings decades of travel expertise, with an emphasis on cruising,” says Kyriakos Anastassiadis, CEO of Celestyal Cruises. “We expect he will bring immeasurable enthusiasm to his role and we look forward to him achieving tremendous success in North America.”
Wang comes to Celestyal Cruises with over a decade of maritime experience. For the past nine years she was the Secretary to the Chief Representative in the Shanghai office of Anangel Maritime Service, Inc. Prior to that, Wang was a core member of the New Building Project at Newfront Shipping Management Inc.
“Ms. Wang’s outstanding interpersonal and presentation skills will be a tremendous asset to Celestyal Cruises in what will become a crucial marketplace for us,” says Anastassiadis. “We expect her to build powerful, long-lasting partnerships throughout China to stimulate and support our growth in this crucial market. We wish her immeasurable success.”
