Peggy Bendel, President

Peggy Bendel is a globally-recognized expert in travel marketing, crisis communications and media training, and has worked for clients around the world, from Australia to Arizona, California to Chile, South Africa to Sweden.

A principal in the seminal I Love New York campaign, Peggy began her career as a travel writer for the State of New York, and worked in economic development and international trade as well as tourism.

Recognized with a "Lifetime Achievement" award by the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International, Peggy is a frequent speaker at conferences and workshops, and contributes to a range of industry publications, including Travel Marketing Decisions, PR Tactics and O'Dwyer's PR Report. She has been profiled in a variety of international media, most recently in Vienna, Austria and Portugal.

She sits on the Boards of the Association of Travel Marketing Executives (ATME), the Public Relations Society of America's (PRSA) Travel & Tourism section, and Ecology Project International, and is a member of the Society of American Travel Writers (SATW), the American Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association (AIANTA) and other industry organizations.

A frequent speaker at conferences around the U.S. and internationally on the topics of branding, crisis communications, marketing and public relations, Peggy is also an experienced media coach and trainer.

A graduate of Georgian Court College (now University), Peggy was named to their "Court of Honor" in 2008. She also studied at NYU's Graduate School of Public Administration. Peggy lives in New York and Tucson, AZ, with her husband Robert Gjestland and multiple felines.

You can reach Peggy via email or by using our Contact page.