SARASOTA, Fla. (July 6, 2023) – Today the Visit Sarasota County (VSC)
Board of Directors voted to appoint current VSC Vice President Erin M.
Duggan, CDME as the new President and CEO of VSC effective September 30
when the current President, Virginia J. Haley, CDME retires.
Duggan has been with VSC since 2005, serving first as Public Relations
Manager then Brand Director and most recently as Vice President since
2016. In her various roles at VSC, she helped create initiatives such
as the wildly successful airline marketing incentive program that
attracted new air service into the Sarasota Bradenton International
Airport. Eighteen years ago, she developed Savor Sarasota Restaurant
Week that annually occurs the first two weeks of June and put Sarasota
on the culinary map. Over the years, she has developed award-winning
marketing and public relations campaigns.
“I want to thank the community search advisory committee that assisted
the VSC Board in this process”, said Nick Mavrikas, Chair of the VSC
Board of Directors. “In Erin Duggan, we have selected a leader in the
tourism industry who will be able to take this organization and Sarasota
County to the next level into the future.”
Duggan has been a long-time leader in the local community, serving as
President of the Junior League of Sarasota and is the Past Chair of the
Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce’s Youth Leadership Program. She
is a graduate of the Gulf Coast Community Foundation Leadership
Institute and the Sarasota Chamber’s Leadership Sarasota programs.
Professionally, Duggan has served on the Board of Directors for
Destinations Florida, the trade association for all of Florida’s
destination tourism organizations, the Board of the Society of American
Travel Writers and the VISIT FLORIDA Marketing Council. She was named
one of 30 Under 30 by Sarasota Magazine in 2007 and one of 40 Under 40
by the Tampa Bay Business Observer in 2016.
Prior to her career at VSC, Duggan served as the Community Relations
Manager for the Economic Development Corporation of Sarasota County and
the Director of Marketing and Communications for United Way of Manatee
County.
Duggan is a graduate of Florida Southern College and holds a Certified
Destination Management Executive designation from Destinations
International and Purdue University. Duggan lives in Sarasota and is
married to attorney Patrick Duggan and they have two teenage sons.
About Sarasota County
Situated on Florida’s Gulf Coast, Sarasota County welcomes more than
2.7 million visitors annually. Within its 725 square miles, the county
serves up a diverse menu of cultural and recreational activities and
attractions, including award-winning dining, world-class fine arts and
performing arts, professional and amateur sports, and the area’s circus
heritage. Vacationers can enjoy city life in downtown Sarasota, revisit
old Florida in Englewood and Venice, enjoy some of the best beaches in
the U.S. on Siesta Key and Longboat Key, or play in North Port’s many
parks and waterways. Sarasota County is perhaps best known for its 35
miles of pristine coastline in addition to 6 barrier islands, delivering
options for beach getaways that are unrivaled almost anywhere else in
the U.S., including Siesta Beach, named the No. 1 beach in the country
and No. 11 in the world in TripAdvisor’s 2020 Travelers’ Choice
Awards – the third time it has held the national title. To learn more,
visit www.visitsarasota.com [3]. Connect via Facebook [4], YouTube [5]
and Instagram [6].
