Top Byron resort recruits new sales boss

The ultra lush Byron at Byron has recruited top sales boss Heath Batterham as Director of Sales.

“We are not only selling our beautiful resort, this role needs to sell the Byron destination” said The Byron at Byron’s General Manager John Parché. “So we needed somebody who possesses a range of skills, who can work with our local tourism community as well as represent our brand internationally”.

Batterham entered the hotel industry after arriving back in Australia in 2000 from Thailand, where he spent two years working for a charity. “I was broke, had a baby on the way and I walked the streets in the best thing I could rustle up for a suit, knocking on doors” he said. The Stamford Plaza in Adelaide took him in as a porter and the young man worked his way from there to his most recent position as Director of Sales at The Langham, Melbourne, where he worked for six years. His fluent Thai came in handy when he rebranded and relaunched a Thai resort for Langham in 2008 on the island of Koh Lanta.

“Heath’s resume shows that he has worked hard to get where he is” said Parché. “Both Lyn and I are impressed by his obvious achievements”.

Despite Byron Bay’s perennial attractions of surf, culture, music and a growing food scene, the Byron at Byron has invested heavily in international marketing of the destination since they opened in 2004. “We travel a lot” said Lyn Parché, “building awareness and relationships. We are in the US at present, having just attended the five day Virtuoso Travel Mart in Las Vegas”.

Batterham says he always dreamt of working in a five star environment, however not all hotels deliver on that promise. “So it was really good to work at The Langham, Melbourne, where they genuinely deliver five star. And now to be working here with Lyn and John is a real joy, because of their hands on approach. This is a beautifully run resort, with old school hospitality all the way. Every guest you meet tells you that they are recognizing that wonderful hospitality and it’s coming all the way from the top”.

Living just behind Byron at Fernleigh, Heath feels like a “child in a candy shop”. “I went swimming last weekend at Broken Head and two dolphins swam around me. The positioning statement of The Byron at Byron – Inspired by nature – is very real. The resort strives to reflect the natural beauty that is all around here in its service and physical environment”.

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