Mar¨ªa Antonieta (TONI) Aguirre

Director of Sales - TravelPulse

All travel experiences have marked my life in different ways. I traveled in my mother¡¯s womb, and my father¡¯s army career took us all over the world. He would always say, ¡°let?s have our toothbrush always ready, because we never know where we?ll be next.¡± Experiencing various cultures while living and working abroad has not only afforded me the advantage of being bilingual, but also bi-and tri-cultural. I refer to myself as being a ¡°citizen of the world,¡± for if I yearn for places that I miss, I cannot enjoy the wonders of the place where my feet are planted today.

I did not gain a passion for travel, but rather was born into it. It actually began long before me with my ancestors having traveled themselves from other continents to land in the place I am originally from. I myself began traveling when I was in my mother¡¯s womb, and I was born in a different country. As an army brat, I was immersed in various cultures, languages and traditions throughout my childhood, allowing me to become adaptable and capable of making connections wherever I went, leading me easily into the travel industry.

I hold a BA in Management by Escuela Superior de Administraci¨®n de Instituciones E.S.D.A.I. in Mexico City and a CPD (Continuing Professional Development) course in Hotel Management by Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y.? My acquired bilingual and bicultural skills allowed me not only to have held key positions in the international areas of Mexican private and public sectors, but also understand doing business with Mexico and Latin American countries, among others.?

The passion for travel continued into my adult life, and I have lived and traveled extensively throughout Mexico, the U.S., Canada, the UK and Europe during my 33+ year career in the travel industry.?

Working at Northstar provides me the capability of sharing the messages of amazing wonders of a destination and diverse offerings a supplier has with travel advisors, the industry and consumers alike, through amazing tools like TravelPulse, the most read travel website in the world.

The experience and my passion for the travel industry, has expanded my knowledge of products and how to give our clients measurable results on telling their story. This career and working for such an amazing brand, allows me to continue building relationships, and making friends around the globe with whom I continue to keep in touch with thanks to the beauty of technology and air connectivity, which is now more than ever, accessible to all.

CHARLOTTE BLISS

Account Director - Meetings Group UK ¨C M&IT / TMS / AMI / Challenges

I started my career in Media and Events out in Hong Kong in 2001, when I moved back to the UK in 2014, I was lucky to join the CAT Media team, which then became part of Northstar in 2019. The majority of my experience has been with international markets and recently I have started developing partnerships with clients across Europe, the UK and North America. I am very fortunate to have such a fun, interesting job, with supportive, motivating colleagues, in such a vibrant and diverse community. It is a privilege to be part of the Northstar family.

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Alex Mancini

Digital Director - The BTN Group

I¡¯ve been part of Northstar for over 8 years, the last 6 with The BTN Group. I¡¯ve previously held roles at Phocuswright, Travel42 and The Travel Group.? What makes it unique here is the collaborative company culture. I genuinely love how my colleagues work together with the same common goal of producing a successful brand. Seeing the results from both our audience and partners are so rewarding as they return to attend an event, read our content, and view a webinar.??

Timothy Maxwell

Account Manager

The education I have received in a few short years is vast and useful and something I can keep with me forever. Northstar encourages its employees to seek career and personal growth and they do that by instilling the importance of teamwork, friendship and support. This camaraderie is what keeps me motivated and inspired working at?Northstar. I have felt nothing but encouraged and supported over the years and I am excited to see where my career at Northstar leads me next.

I have had many jobs and worked in many departments at Northstar and in each role I have felt supported and inspired. I have had wonderful mentors who have been incredibly hands on in making sure I not only understood my responsibilities but felt confident in doing so. My mentors quickly became friends and people I could trust and rely on. I have learned so much from them and continue to learn and grow. It is this strong community and support system that keeps me motivated and inspired working at Northstar.

My career started in digital media services with the email team. It was where I quickly realized camaraderie was the beating heart of success. As a new employee, I was warmly welcomed and had endless support from all my colleagues. My confidence in the workplace and skillset was boosted and I felt ready for more responsibility which is when I transitioned into campaign management. In my role as a campaign manager I absorbed infinite knowledge in everything related to digital ad trafficking as well as the ins and outs of effectively managing a digital advertising campaign. Once again, I had a very strong support system and always felt confident. Soon after I transitioned once more to Studio 90 as an account manager which is my current role at Northstar. In Studio 90 I have acquired another new skill set in nurturing and growing client relationships.

I feel very lucky to work for a company that encourages growth and supports all your career and personal endeavors. I don¡¯t think I would have found this success anywhere else.?

Shilpa Mehrotra

Project Manager - Project Management Department

I have been part of the Northstar family for the past 7 years.? Having worked in quite a few firms before, I can confidently say that the people and work culture at Northstar sets it apart from other organizations.

Northstar provided me a challenging yet flexible environment that helped me grow as a professional while maintaining good work-life balance. Some days are crazy with hectic hours but then it always balances out.? Also, I really like how different teams on the projects are transparent to each other which helps in getting everyone on the same page and makes execution of the ideas easy and effective.

Jay Nelson

VP of Business Development for Travel Weekly and Travel Age West

I have 30 years in the travel industry focusing on sales and business development. I have set up and negotiated major contracts with charter airlines, hotels and land operators around the world.? I have also owned and operated two travel agencies and built them to 10 million in sales before selling them. Under Northstar, I worked for the Hotel & Travel Index and held various jobs starting as Sales Director, covering the South East US and the Caribbean. Hotel & Travel Index was the most successful B&B publication in world.? I am currently Associate Publisher, VP of Business Development for Travel Weekly & Travel Age West.

I was introduced to travel at a young age when my parents took me to the Caribbean at 10 years old. Before then, like most kids growing up, travel mostly consisted of driving trips and vacations close to where we lived in New England. I grew up on the water and have always been attracted to the water as long as I can remember. After graduating from college, I worked in the entertainment industry and traveled frequently, but never in one place long enough to appreciate what each destination had to offer. But I enjoyed seeing little snippets of each place. Because of that job, at a young age I had the pleasure of meeting and working with Travel Agents, Hotels and transportation companies and I always told them what a cool job they had getting to meet so many people on vacation. ? I knew how lucky I was to combine a career and travel and with that knowledge, I decided I was going to be involved in this industry for the rest of my life.? Enter Northstar Travel Group - it checked all the boxes and combined with my past history, was the perfect match and I¡¯ve never looked back.? I¡¯ve been with Northstar for over 28 and will retire at some point from Northstar being grateful working in such a wonderful industry with amazing people.?

Shamim Patel

HR Business Partner, Human Resources UK

Travel makes you modest as you see what a tiny space you occupy in the world. They say that all you need to be able to travel the world is a book, but when those pages spark an insatiable desire to experience firsthand the cultures and curiosities of those places, the only way to sate your longing is to go there.? Travelling the world enables us to absorb various cultures and experiences and provides us with life-long memories ¨C something money cannot buy!

I have worked for Northstar for a little over 2 years and it took a few months before it all started to make sense, but once it did, and I became familiar with our various brands within the Travel industry, it was obvious that I was in the place I wanted to be! I love Travelling and the thought of exploring the world some day is what motivates me, every, single, day.?

I have travelled to a few different countries in my time but my faith in my religion, Islam, took me to Saudi Arabia with my parents for a spiritual journey. And the entire experience is something I had never felt before. I had these visions from listening to stories and experiences from others, but it wasn¡¯t until I was ¡®in it¡¯ to experience it, is when I could truly relate and feel the connection. I remember encountering many challenges during our journey, I mean sleeping in an open field with thousands of people, my sleeping bag and the beautiful stars was just one of many. It is these memories that are never forgotten, not even the smallest of experiences, to tell the tale to my kids, today.?? ? ? ??

Traveling to different places have exposed me to cultures, people, and food! It is these experiences in life that have driven the desire to be continually learning and understanding the world and people, something I try to harness within my day-to-day life. I enjoy working with people from different cultures as it¡¯s exciting and liberating, so interacting with others is one of the beautiful perks of working within the HR field, and a career decision I am grateful for every day, fifteen years, and going strong!

Working for Northstar has made me understand and deeply appreciate the hard work and dedication that goes into ensuring travellers have the best possible experience. Like most industries, we as consumers, reap the rewards of this hard work without acknowledging the skill and commitment that goes into building and maintaining a thriving industry. Since working at Northstar, I appreciate every process that has been developed to ensure trips are efficient, safe and fun!?

Janice Perez

Custom Content Editor - Northstar's Studio 90

As a Northstar employee for approximately 29 years, I have witnessed numerous fluctuations in the travel industry. With every challenge and shift, Northstar has adjusted with an attitude of creative innovation to serve the marketplace with valuable intel, and meaningful products and services. That¡¯s what makes this company a great place to work. The culture is one that embraces change, encourages growth, and utilizes its people to make it happen.?

The people are the heartbeat of what makes this a special place to work. While company names have changed, many of the faces have not, which is reflective of Northstar¡¯s ability to retain valuable employees and recognize their contributions.?

Within my tenure at Northstar, I have literally grown up in this culture. Only a few months after graduating college, I was offered a position as an editorial assistant with the Directories Group. Since then, I¡¯ve had the pleasure of working with various teams, establishing dear friendships, and learning valuable personal and professional lessons while having the freedom to flourish and mature. After I made a career change to pursue one of my lifelong aspirations several years ago, the opportunity arose to possibly work with some of these great colleagues again, and I couldn¡¯t refuse. On my recent return, it was refreshing to see even greater tenacity from Northstar to maintain its high level of quality, relevance and innovation in the marketplace during the current crises within the travel industry and world at large.?

As part of the BIPOC community, it is essential for me to work for a company that is committed to equity and diversity on all levels. Northstar¡¯s transparency in its quest to create an environment where everyone is valued is not only encouraging but inspiring as we work together to provide our readers and customers with the best information, products and services representative of the talented people who work here. I am proud to be counted among them again.

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DANIELLA SAMEDY

DIGITAL PRODUCTION COORDINATOR, DIGITAL AD SERVICES

When people ask me how long I¡¯ve been working at Northstar, my smile widens, and my answer is ¡°almost too many years to count¡±. I have memories that reach as far back as preparing large flats of film for the press and there has always been tremendous camaraderie and laughter. What I have enjoyed most over the years is the non-stop education. Northstar has taught me to never stop growing. The gratification received from dedicating my time and energy to help move the company forward when the department needs me to learn new skills, brings a constant smile to my face. I tell people all the time, ¡°I love my job¡±, ¡°I love the people on my team¡±, ¡°I love the industry¡±, ¡°I love learning new things and helping out anywhere I can.¡± I hope my smile will help light the way for new employees and those around me.??

Elise Schoening

Senior Associate Editor, Northstar Meetings Group

¡°Growing up half Swedish, traveling is something that I¡¯ve always been passionate about. Northstar Travel Group has given me the opportunity to turn this passion into a career. In my role as a Senior Associate Editor, I¡¯m able to write about the latest news in the meetings and travel industries, as well as do some traveling of my own. Working in a newsroom that has tirelessly covered the Covid-19 crisis and called attention to the initiatives and aid needed to bring back travel and restore confidence in face-to-face meetings has been very rewarding, and has made me all the more appreciative for this industry.¡±

Elise joined Northstar Travel Group in 2019. She works on the Northstar Meetings Group, Successful Meetings and Meetings & Conventions brands. Her responsibilities include writing and editing for the online and print publications, managing social media, producing podcasts and webinars, overseeing the annual Convention Cities Index and more.?

Elise has always had a passion for travel, as she comes from a bicultural family and has dual citizenship with Sweden. While in high school, Elise spent a year studying in Sweden so she could master the language and learn more about the country her mother came from.?

Working for Northstar Travel Group has allowed Elise to channel her love of travel into a career. She hopes to one day live in Europe again, perhaps in the Netherlands or Germany. Until then, you can find her writing up the latest travel news and interviewing industry leaders.

Elise holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and Professional Writing from The College of New Jersey. She also triple minored in marketing, communications and gender studies. Prior to joining Northstar, Elise served as an Assistant Editor at G3 Communications and freelanced for The Asbury Park Press. She currently lives in New Jersey.