Gayle Conran, President, is a media relations specialist with over fifteen years of experience in the travel and tourism industry.  At Conran, she has built the boutique firm into one of the leading tourism PR agencies on the East Coast for independent hotels, regional tourist offices and CVBs, ski resorts and consortiums. 

Before launching Conran in 1999, she was a Managing Director in the Travel Division of Hill & Knowlton Public Relations in New York City, part of the WPP Group and one of the largest global agencies in the world.  During her tenure there she directed strategic programs for some of the industry's top destination, hospitality, and aviation accounts, including the Palm Beach County Convention and Visitors Bureau and Puerto Rico Tourism. In 1998, Ms. Conran was a member of the crisis communication team that handled Swissair flight #111 disaster.

Prior to Hill and Knowlton, Gayle was an account executive at a mid-size public relations firm in Manhattan and served as the East Coast media representative for foreign and domestic travel brands, including Cathay Pacific Airways.  From 1990 to 1994 she worked in-house for Swissair in passenger service and communications.  She has achieved award-winning results for outstanding client work including Gold, Silver and Bronze Awards from the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI).

Gayle is an active member of the leading industry organizations, including the Society of American Travel Writers (SATW); the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI); the Association of Travel Marketing Executives (ATME); the North American Travel Journalist Association (NATJA); and the North American Snowsports Journalists Association (NASJA).  She graduated from Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island with a B.A. in English Literature and a proficiency in French.  By-lined articles on the arts have appeared in the Boston Globe and Boston TAB newspapers, Playbill and other publications.  She started her professional life as a ballet dancer.  She was a company member of Boston Ballet from 1981 to 1989, during which time she toured the U.S., Mexico and Europe with Rudolf Nureyev in his productions of Swan Lake, Giselle and Don Quixote.

Now that she is no longer bound to a tutu, Gayle spends her off time cooking, skiing, kayaking, hiking or simply relaxing with her family.  Gayle’s Giving Back efforts are focused on Career Transitions for Dancers, a non-profit organization that supports professional dancers through education and funding as they prepare for their next career. She has initiated a flexible internship program that gives dancers the opportunity to gain experience in a PR agency during their off time from performing.