Dianna Pierce, VP of Sales for Explore Asheville CVB retires after 26 years of service
Note: Dianna Pierce, Explore Asheville’s Vice President of Sales, has retired after a total of 26 years with the CVB. Following is the transcript of a tribute paid by Buncombe County TDA Board Chair Himanshu Karvir, at the March 25, 2021 meeting of the BCTDA.
A Tribute to Dianna Pierce by the Chair of the Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority, Himanshu Karvir
At this time I’d like to take a moment to pay tribute to Dianna Pierce, Explore Asheville’s Vice President of Sales. Dianna is retiring after a total of 26 years with the CVB. Thank you, Dianna. That’s impressive!
Dianna started shortly after the Buncombe County TDA was formed in 1983. She was the first meetings salesperson hired by the head of the CVB at that time, Doug Stafford. She left after about 5 years and rejoined the CVB in 2000. Her accomplishments over the full 26 years are many and varied. She’s a leader on the team who has helped evolve our sales approach as our destination has matured.
She has created the Meetings Development Fund, an incentive program used to offset other expenses of a meeting, such as transportation onsite and other expenses that meetings have. She also initiated the 48-Hour Meeting Planner Experience… hosting 19 FAM tours with 145 meeting planner participants since 2013, generating more than 10,700 requested rooms, 7,100 pickup rooms, and over $2 million in actualized revenue and an estimated contribution of more than $5 million to the local economy.
We can also thank Dianna for the support, efforts and work of her team, in tandem with the Asheville Buncombe Regional Sports Commission, in helping to secure the contract extension of the Southern Conference Basketball Championships, as well as bringing other signature events here like the Cyclocross National Championships, the Spartan Race, and the Fed Cup.
Throughout her tenure with the TDA, she’s held various titles over time and she was rewarded with more responsibility. And starting tomorrow, she’ll have a new title, which will be “RETIRED.” I bet she’s looking forward to that!
Dianna, on behalf of the TDA the community at large, including the hoteliers here, we deeply appreciate your dedication for more than a quarter century. We wish you the best. And as a hotel owner myself, I am personally grateful for your work and leadership to bring groups here. Thank you!
View recording of tributes at the board meeting and Dianna’s parting remarks here >>