Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (NCLH) has announced organisation enhancements for its Asia Pacific office to enable it to deepen its presence in the Chinese cruise market.
This will see Steve Odell, senior vice president & managing director Asia Pacific, taking on an expanded portfolio that includes the company’s China operations along with the greater Asia Pacific region.
In his expanded role, Odell is responsible for the strategic expansion, vision and continued growth of the company’s presence in the fast-growing Asia Pacific market, and will continue to report to Harry Sommer.
He is currently chairman of CLIA Australasia and a founding board member of the Asia Cruise Association, and brings with him 30 years of cruise industry experience, 17 of those were spent in Asia.
Alex (Yucheng) Xiang has been promoted to managing director of the company’s China operations, effective February 2.
In his new role, Xiang will assume leadership of the dedicated teams in Shanghai and Beijing–the first senior officer in the region–reporting to Odell.
Xiang has been part of the China team since its launch as vice president of sales. Prior to joining the company, he held a number of senior executive roles in sales, marketing and business development, including deputy general manager, sales & marketing in China for Royal Caribbean Cruise Service (China) Co. Ltd.
Since the launch of the company’s Shanghai and Beijing offices in 2015, the team has launched the first Norwegian Cruise Line ship based in China, Norwegian Joy last year. The purpose-built ship for the Chinese market has deepened the company’s foothold in the region, delivering the fastest growth of any market in 2017.