The Croatian National Tourist Board has a brand new director!
As HTZ states on the 5th of July, 2017, Kristjan Staničić has been unanimously nominated at the 19th session of the Council of the Croatian Tourist Board as the new director of the Croatian Tourist Board’s main office.
After all seven candidates had the opportunity to present their programs, Staničić was chosen as the best candidate. The Tourism Council meeting was chaired by the Minister of Tourism and President of the Croatian Tourist Board, Gari Cappelli, who informed the members of the council at the beginning of the session about the high quality of the election process of the new director.
“I am delighted that Kristjan Staničić has been elected as the director of the Croatian Tourist Board. He is a true professional with many years of experience in the tourism industry that I am sure will give a great boost to the further positioning of Croatia as one of the most attractive tourist destinations. These values have been recognised, and this is supported by the fact that Director Staničić was elected by unanimous decision of the Council. Croatian tourism has great potential for growth and development, and I am sure that through joint collaboration we will make Croatia more competitive and more recognisable throughout the world,” said Tourism Minister Gari Cappelli, adding that the decision was not simple or easy since all of the candidates were excellent and all of them had very respectable resumes.
“I am sure that a good number of candidates will make their contribution to the further development of Croatian tourism in the future and find their places within the system,” noted Minister Cappelli, thanking the former director of the Croatian Tourist Board, Ratomir Ivičić, for good cooperation and successful leadership of the HTZ Main Office .
Otherwise, Kristjan Staničić was born on October 1, 1973 in Koper and is a married father of one. He graduated from the Faculty of Hotel Management in Opatija. He also completed a one-year study at the Diplomatic Academy in Zagreb and earned his Masters degree at the Faculty of Hotel and Tourism Management in Opatija. Although he actually began his career at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where he worked from 1996 to 2001, which includes a stint at the Croatian embassy in Ljubljana, Slovenia, Staničić has very rich experience in the tourism sector as well. Namely, he worked as Assistant Director of Marketing and Sales of New Hotels, and was also a member of the Management Board of the same company. He served as President of the Board of Directors of Liburnia Riviera Hotels, President of the Board of the Crikvenica Hotel Company ”Jadran”, and as Executive Director of Sales and Marketing, and then President of the Management Board of Hotel Bernardin from Portorož, Slovenia.
Staničić has also actively participated in the development of strategic documents in the field of tourism: The Tourism Development Strategy of the Republic of Croatia, the Strategic Plan for Tourism Development of Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, the Strategic Tourism Development Plan of the City of Opatija, and the Strategic Marketing Plan of the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County.
He is a member of the Executive Board of the Employers’ Association in the Hotel Business of Croatia (UPUHH) and was also Vice President of UPUHH between 2010 and 2016, a member of the TZ Primorje-Gorski Kotar County Tourist Board from 2006 to 2013, Member of the Council for Congressional and Incentive Activities at HTZ (2007 – 2012).
He speaks English, Italian and Slovenian and is even knowledgeable in German and French language.
Congratulations, Kristjan Staničić!
