Northern California business voices of the pandemic: Visit Napa Valley
The Business Journal talked with Linsey Gallagher, president and CEO, Visit Napa Valley.
How have the past two years changed you, personally and professionally?
Professionally, I joined Visit Napa Valley a few months before the pandemic onset. I was just getting up the learning curve in my new role, in a new industry (after spending 15 years in the California wine industry) and understanding the path forward for the hospitality industry in Napa Valley when the “wheels came off the bus” for our industry overnight, in March 2020.
I tend to like to prepare and “do my homework,” so the constant pivot of the pandemic and dealing with daily unknowns, really forced me to develop a different leadership style and a level of confidence centered in “trusting my stuff” and leading with both grit and grace.
Personally, after nearly constant work-related international travel for more than 10 years, neither my husband nor I had any work travel. This was a true silver lining for our family and provided an opportunity to be centered at home in Napa for a long period of time. On the flip side, we have two young children (who were in kindergarten and 2nd grade when the pandemic began). The endless home-school and distance learning purgatory was excruciatingly tough for everyone, but in particular working parents and elementary school students.
Are there any ‘lessons learned’ that will change how you approach your work going forward?
To be creative, to be nimble, to be courageous, to not be afraid to fail, to be a more engaged advocate on behalf of our community of residents and hospitality staff, to lead with passion, to support our tourism partners and to celebrate the good life we offer here in Napa Valley.
There are many silver linings as the hospitality industry recovers in Napa County. We know that time is the new luxury, and travelers value spending time with family and friends above all else.
We are seeing fewer people come to Napa Valley, but they are staying longer and spending more money when they come to our destination. This is an approach that we will continue to foster in our role as stewards of our destination on the path to recovery.