Carnival Corp. has reshuffled its leadership deck, appointing new presidents to three of its five North America-facing brands. Reactions were mostly positive within the trade to the changes atop Princess Cruises, Holland America Line (HAL) and Seabourn Cruises, although some worried the moves could be a sign that Carnival Corp. is looking to cut costs.
"Change is always exciting," said Alex Sharpe, president of Signature Travel Network.
The appointments include two longtime leaders from within the Carnival Corp. family. Gus Antorcha became president of Princess Cruises on Dec. 2 after serving as president of HAL since 2020. The move puts Antorcha in charge of Carnival's second-largest North American brand.
"Gus will do a great job no matter what cruise line he's running," said Anthony Hamawy, president of Cruise.com.
Anthony Hamawy
Antorcha replaces John Padgett, who became president of Princess in 2021 after serving as Carnival Corp.'s chief experience and innovation officer since 2014. Key in the development of the Princess Medallion technology, Padgett will stay on through mid-February to help with the transition before leaving the company.
Replacing Antorcha at HAL is 20-year brand veteran Beth Bodensteiner, who spent the past six years as the line's senior vice president and COO. Like Antorcha, she will also have executive responsibility for Seabourn Cruises. The two brands combined their sales forces this summer.
Several advisors said they felt comfortable with Bodensteiner's promotion.
"She's a known commodity, and I feel like they already have a good team around her," said Sharpe.
Mark Tamis became president of Seabourn on Dec. 2. He's a former Carnival Cruise Line senior vice president who later ran hotel operations for Royal Caribbean International and most recently was global vice president at Aimbridge Hospitality. Tamis replaced Natalya Leahy, who accepted a position outside of Carnival Corp.
Sharpe said Seabourn is a complicated product and that it's important that the new president has both operational and sales acumen.
"The leadership, including the president, for luxury brands needs to be engaged with the trade directly," Sharpe said.
Is cost-cutting next?
Geoff Cox
Some advisors interpreted the leadership changes as a sign the company is looking to focus on yield growth and cut costs. While Carnival Corp.'s balance sheet has recovered from the pandemic, it still carries $26.6 billion in long-term debt.
"If I were them, I would be promoting folks that have a proven track record of impacting those numbers," said Geoff Cox, vice president of sales and marketing for KHM Travel Group. "Seems to me Padgett was focused on guest experience. Antorcha is a finance guy."
Angela Hughes
Angela Hughes, owner of Trips and Ships Travel, interprets the changes as signs of a cutback, but hopes they create opportunities for lines to create operational efficiencies and renew their focus on building relationships with advisors.
What she fears are changes in processes that will require retraining advisors and an increased focus on direct business.
"I think with the change of leadership, we always fear more direct-to-consumer marketing and focus might occur when there are cutbacks like this," Hughes said.