Charlene Lopez, Vice President of Sales at Atlanta Convention & Visitors Bureau (ACVB), will be promoted to Executive Vice President and Chief Sales Officer for the bureau on Jan. 1, 2024. Lopez will be in charge of developing and implementing all sales programs for ACVB. She will promote visitation to Atlanta through tradeshow, in-house, international tourism sales as well as convention services. As Executive VP and CSO, Lopez is the first C-level woman, the highest ranking woman, in ACVB’s 110 year history.
Lopez got her bachelor’s at Texas A&M, and her Master’s In Human Resource Management at Tarleton State University and became Associate Director of Sales at the Hyatt Regency Country Resort and Spa in San Antonio in 2007. She moved to Associate Director of Sales at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta in 2009, eventually became Director of Sales at the Omni Hotel at CNN Center before joining the ACVB as National Sales Director in 2012. She has been a sales leader at the bureau since.
Currently she is vice chair of American Society of Association Executives’ (ASAE) Industry Partner Alliance Committee and serves on the International Association of Exhibitions and Events’ (IAEE) Southeast Chapter board of directors. The ACVB has been Atlanta’s official marketing organization since its establishment in 1913.
Marie Browne, Group Vice President, RX Global, is the 2023 Chairperson for the Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR) recently announced Board of Directors. Based in Dallas,TX, the Center oversees the largest collection of exhibition related studies to help companies understand face to face marketing.
Browne received her bachelor’s at Baruch College in 1991 and her MBA, Marketing/Finance from UCONN’s School of Business in 2004. She has worked at Elizabeth Howard & Company, AWED, and Comtek International before joining RX as VP with Reed Medical Education in 2000. Becoming Group VP in 2020, Browne has been with RX Global for over 20 years overseeing various events, helping with company strategy and M&A, as well as new business launches. She is also a board member with the International Association of Exhibitions and Events (IAEE).
