Craig C. Email & Phone Number

Dallas, Tx, Us

New Orleans, La, Us

As Chief Experience Officer (CXO), I am responsible for overseeing and enhancing the overall customer experience across all touchpoints. I spearheaded efforts to ensure the experiential production across all projects was world-class. My focus was on creating unparalleled experiences that not only met but exceeded guest expectations while effectively conveying the stories that our clients wanted to tell.I grew core business revenue by 6% on a like-for-like basis and achieved an 80% pitch win rate by integrating operational and commercial expertise into proposals, earning the trust of clients as their go-to "attractions expert." Additionally, I proactively built a new Attractions Design Advisory business from the ground up, which contributed 6% of total revenue within its first year.My leadership extended to designing and developing new attraction concepts that elevated and transformed client brands, such as overseeing a $25M expansion for a branded homeplace and repositioning the LA Civil Rights Museum from static displays to immersive, purpose-driven experiences.Throughout my role, I am responsible for all facets of strategy, sales, operations, project execution, and growth initiatives, ensuring that every experience delivered was second to none.

New Orleans, La, Us

Solomon Group is a fast-growing entertainment production company specializing in live events for sports, music, and broadcast, as well as themed attraction parks, exhibits, and museum spaces across the United States. As COO, I oversee current operations and leverage my extensive international theme park management experience to drive our success.I lead our operating teams, identify growth opportunities, develop sustainable business practices, and collaborate with the CEO and executive team to foster a vibrant workplace culture. My focus is on supporting organic growth, realizing ambitious acquisition strategies, maximizing profitability, and ensuring client satisfaction.I am accountable for the performance of our customer-facing business units, overseeing management and offerings from custom manufacturing to creative services.

Poole, England, Gb

As Division President for Asia, I oversee full P&L responsibility ($100m+) for 9 visitor attractions across Hong Kong, Korea, Japan, Thailand, and Singapore, including globally recognized brands such as Madame Tussauds, SEA LIFE, and LEGOLAND Discovery Center. I lead a team of country general managers and regional functional directors, driving growth and ensuring operational excellence across all sites. My role involves setting the strategic vision for each market, executing marketing initiatives, and enhancing guest experiences to deliver exceptional results. Through a hands-on leadership approach, I focus on aligning operations with the company’s long-term growth strategy and ensuring that each attraction consistently surpasses performance and profitability targets.In my role as Commercial Director for Asia, I was responsible for overseeing all commercial operations across 16 centers in China, Hong Kong, South Korea, Thailand, Japan, and Singapore. With full P&L responsibility for a $30M turnover, I led initiatives that resulted in the highest growth globally. In this capacity, I drove commercial strategy, focusing on new business development, product innovation, and profit maximization. I also managed expenditures, implemented best practices, and introduced new guest experiences that generated over 100% ROIC. My leadership resulted in the successful launch of new products and enhanced guest satisfaction, contributing to the sustained growth of the region’s operations.

Poole, England, Gb

Concurrent with my role as Asia Commercial Director, I was appointed to lead the turnaround of a declining region that had experienced 12% annual declines over the preceding three years. I assumed full P&L ownership for the struggling attractions, Madame Tussauds and Legoland Discovery Center, in Tokyo and Osaka. These attractions were considered unsalvageable by many in the company, with previous turnaround attempts having failed.Within just six months, with a mainly newly recruited, handpicked, and highly committed staff, we achieved 14% YoY profit growth. This success was driven by:- Improving guest experience through operational enhancements and increased staff engagement.- Revamping the sales strategy, resulting in 22% revenue growth in Osaka and 13% in Tokyo.- Upgrading attraction products, addressing fundamental issues, and adding innovations to drive higher "reason to visit" scores.

Poole, England, Gb

Brought in to lead a program of corporate culture change and business growth, I managed a team of over 100 employees to deliver one of the highest revenue and profit growth records in the company globally. My efforts built a highly engaged team that won multiple global awards, exceeded operational KPIs every year, and developed new attraction concepts.As General Manager of two attractions under one umbrella (Images of Singapore LIVE and Madame Tussauds), I had full P&L responsibility and acted as the company's ambassador in Singapore. I led new product development and capital investment projects, drove sales strategy, and managed financial planning. I also handled HR, developed people strategies, ensured high health & safety standards, and built strong industry networks. Additionally, I explored new business opportunities, maintained high customer experience standards, and developed award-winning marketing strategies. I oversaw daily operations, including rides, shows, interactives, games, and retail units.Driving Growth of Profits: Led my team to identify new customer segments, increase market penetration, and achieve one of the highest growth rates in the company worldwide.Building Company Culture: Drove a corporate cultural change that reduced staff turnover from over 50% to single digits, significantly increased staff engagement (highest in the company worldwide), and won the internal global award for "Most Engaged Team."Best in Class Operations: Led the team to consistently rank in the top decile of Merlin attractions worldwide in customer service KPIs and mystery visit scores.Innovation: Developed and piloted new attraction concepts, including design, prototyping, fundraising, and build-out. Each concept became a success and has since been rolled out regionally or globally.

Poole, England, Gb

I had full P&L responsibility for two distinct businesses: SEA LIFE Mooloolaba and The Wharf Marina (a marina complex featuring retail shops and restaurants. Some of my key achievements include improving operational standards and guest handling, managing multiple PR crises, increasing staff engagement, and successfully rebranding the aquarium to SEA LIFE. My role spanned multiple areas, including animal welfare, marketing, operations, sales, HR, finance, health & safety, retail, and F&B.Operations and Guest Experience: Led a team of 110 employees to significantly improve guest satisfaction and mystery visit scores, achieving the highest regional increase.Team Culture Building: Boosted staff engagement and satisfaction through effective coaching and mentoring.Rebranding: Oversaw the successful rebranding of the aquarium, including the development of new products and shows.This experience showcased my ability to drive operational excellence, elevate team performance, and lead impactful rebranding efforts.

Poole, England, Gb

Managed and directed full P&L responsibility for two SEA LIFE aquarium centers in Scotland: one in Loch Lomond and one in Oban. My responsibilities included overseeing marketing, sales, operations, HR, health & safety, animal welfare, retail, and F&B.Key achievements included:New Business Development: Developed a new venture by refurbishing an unused cinema room on aquarium grounds, securing all required licenses and funding, and converting it into the only commercial cinema in the local community showing Hollywood films. This initiative brought the community together and increased business for the aquarium.Financial Performance: Exceeded the annual profit budget target by 184%.This role showcased my ability to innovate, drive community engagement, and achieve outstanding financial results.

Hannover, Lower Saxony, De

Managed all resorts, hotels, and short break trips across two regions in Africa – initially in Gambia and later in Egypt. Initially brought in to stabilize operations, I successfully transformed both regions into highly profitable businesses. My leadership in these roles demonstrated my ability to drive operational excellence and deliver significant financial improvements.

Hannover, Lower Saxony, De

Responsible for overseeing all operations and revenue across multiple resorts in two prominent regions of Spain – Andalusia and Mallorca. In this role, I managed all aspects of operations, including staff management, guest experience and safety, on-site sales of add-on excursions, and budget adherence. I successfully streamlined operations to enhance guest experience and staff engagement, ensuring optimal resource allocation and operational efficiency. My leadership contributed to significant improvements in overall performance and profitability.