Hospitality Association elects new Chair

Thursday 21 March 2019

The Jersey Hospitality Association has elected the former chairman of the Branchage film festival as its new Chair at its Annual General Meeting.

Jeremy Swetenham will take over from outgoing JHA Pesident Fiona Kerley, who will remain a member of the JHA board.

He will be joined by new Vice Chairs, Martina McGibney and Stef Stevens, who will take over from Marcus Calvani and Natalie Duffy in the roles.

Mr Swetenham spent seven years as Commercial Director at Jersey Heritage, and was chairman of the Branchage International Film Festival.

Pictured: Stef Stevens and Martina McGibney, JHA's new Vice Presidents.

“This is an exciting time for the JHA, we have a lot to look forward to and I am lucky to be taking this on at a time when the association has already made such great strides in developing a good positive reputation among its members and the community," he said.

He thanked his predecessor and her vice-presidents for injecting "new enthusiasm and energy into the committee in a particularly tough market place".

"They met the challenges head on and, together with our CEO Simon Soar, have steered us towards improvement and success,” he added.

Pictured: Fiona Kerley, outgoing JHA President.

The outgoing president said she was delighted with the JHA’s achievements over the past year, particularly in terms of membership growth and the improved promotion of the industry among members and the wider Jersey community.  

She commented: “I feel privileged to have served as president of the JHA and proud of the strong position that we are now in. Each year I have been humbled by what has been achieved by this association – especially as much of that work is done on a voluntary basis by extremely busy business people.

"I wish Simon and Jeremy and the new committee all the very best in leading us onto even greater success and showcasing our vibrant industry to islanders and visitors."