Skift Take
This is 10 years of leading travel industry news, complete with data, analysis, conferences - all the things. Here are some of the folks behind the magic.
July 30 officially marks 10 years for us here at Skift. We’ve been on quite the journey (pun intended, travel industry and all) – from offices all around NYC to now (home offices) all over the world, countless events, hundreds of thousands of articles, not to mention a global pandemic that quite literally almost shut the company down.
But here we are, still standing, still thriving – largely due to the small but mighty team of Skifters behind the magic. They come from all walks of life, different cities and countries and backgrounds – truly embodying the industry itself. In honor of this momentous anniversary occasion, we wanted to let you – our readers – in on the action. Here are ten Skifters you need to meet…
Carolyn Kremins, President
How long have you been a Skifter: 7 years
Department: Leadership
Location: Miami, Bridgehampton
Favorite part of Skift: The energy from within and respect from the industry. Each person and team positively feeds off one another. Our Skifter’s take great pride in what they produce and that translates into meaningful work that guides the most influential global industry titans for the year ahead.
Favorite memory of Skift: I know this may sound strange, but during the devastation of the pandemic, the absolute most challenging time in my entire career, I witnessed remarkable resilience, will and collective determination that not only translated to survival, but led to the robust business we have today. It was the humans of Skift who showed up with all they had to do whatever it took to succeed. A proud moment during a calamitous time and one I will never forget.
Dream destination: This is like choosing my favorite child. Not possible!
Hit list includes: Oman, Morocco, Cambodia, NZ, Seychelles, the Arctic Circle to name a few!
Mike Linden, Senior Engineering Manager
How long have you been a Skifter: 6.5 years
Department: Technology
Location: Bloomfield, NJ USA
Favorite part of Skift: Great work/life balance. Working with great people.
Favorite memory of Skift: Ping-pong on the cruise to Cuba (2016 retreat), the scavenger hunt in Montreal (2017 retreat), the surf lesson in Puerto Rico (2018 retreat), kayaking in the Hamptons (2019 retreat), and zip lining in Puerto Rico (2022 retreat). Too many great memories to pick one!
Dream destination: I’ve always wanted to do a tour of whisky distilleries in Scotland. The problem is my two favorites couldn’t be farther apart.
Beatrice Tagliaferri, Senior Designer
How long have you been a Skifter: 3 years in September
Department: Creative Team
Location: Mainly Valencia, Spain, but I often travel back to my Italian hometown in the north of the country, Bormio
Favorite part of Skift: I really admire Skift’s work ethic: sharing skills, support, knowledge, sharing points of view, talent, energy, sharing time, experience and experiences, is the key to working remotely but growing strong, involved and motivated. I love how every single Skifter is an essential part of the company and brings that diversity & uniqueness that makes every workday inspiring and one-of-a-kind.
Favorite memory of Skift: Without a doubt, the moment I met (almost) all the Skifters in person at the company dinner in Puerto Rico, during the retreat. It’s been breathtaking after almost 3 years of Zoom calls!
Dream destination: I’m torn between fascinating Japan and Kenya’s scenic landscapes and vast wildlife 🤩
Wouter Geerts, Director of Research – Data Product
How long have you been a Skifter: 3 years
Department: Skift Research
Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands
Favorite part of Skift: The go-get attitude, and a great work/life balance.
Favorite memory of Skift: Traveling to New York for my first Skift Global Forum in 2019 was a magical moment. And seeing so many colleagues again at Skift Forum Europe 2022 after two years of zoom.
Dream destination: Japan, without a doubt.
Amy Dame, Digital Marketing Specialist
How long have you been a Skifter: 3 years
Department: Marketing
Location: London, England
Favorite part of Skift: The people at Skift are just amazing. They are genuinely some of the smartest and kindest people I have ever met.
Favorite memory of Skift: Singapore for Skift Forum Asia in 2019. It was such a great experience to meet Skift supporters from the other side of the world and see how impactful Skift truly is. The conference went so well and I was very particularly impressed by Octa founder Zara Khanna, who is the youngest speaker at a skift conference ever – just 9 years old!
Dream destination: I said this in 2019 and I’ll say this again in 2022, I still don’t understand why no-one has booked a 5-star trip, 10 night luxury stay to Dubai for me!
Darren Frei, Branded Content Editor
How long have you been a Skifter: 2 years
Department: SkiftX
Location: New York, NY
Favorite part of Skift: Working with so many supportive and inspiring people. We lift each other up. Such a non-toxic work environment. I also love interacting with clients, building those relationships, and collaborating to create compelling content.
Favorite memory of Skift: So many great memories of the Puerto Rico company retreat, but I think that’s recency bias. Moderating my first in-person brand talk at the Future of Lodging Summit probably ranks at the top of the list.
Dream destination: It changes on a daily basis, but right now I’m dreaming of hiking in the mountains of Tongariro National Park, New Zealand.
Priya Birk, Events Manager
How long have you been a Skifter: 7 months
Department: Events
Location: London, UK
Favorite part of Skift: The incredibly kind/intelligent people and the work/life balance.
Favorite memory of Skift: Skift Forum Europe – my first event and first time meeting the people I work with, it was amazing and truly made me feel a part of the wider team. Not forgetting Puerto Rico, getting to finally meet the rest of my incredible colleagues!
Dream destination: Japan!!
Miguel Neves, Editor-in-Chief, Skift Meetings
How long have you been a Skifter: 1.5 years, give or take
Department: Skift Meetings
Location: Living rural in Denmark nearby a little city called Haderslev (originally from Portugal)
Favorite part of Skift: I really appreciate the ‘no holds barred’ approach to Skift’s editorial and research work. I appreciate being a part of a company that is not afraid to say what needs to be said and publishes high-quality content and is respected around the world.
Favorite memory of Skift: Connecting with other skifters at Skift Forum Europe in March this year after working remotely for the company for over a year. This was my “he’s real – not an avatar on Zoom” moment. It made me feel much more integrated. The in-person interaction really made the whole company come to life.
This photo is of some of the team having a pint in a pretty typical London pub the night before Skift Forum Europe back in March. We’d just left the company dinner at Dishoom, if I remember correctly.
Dream destination: Japan. I’m fascinated by the culture, food and sights. It’s a bucket list item for sure.
Jeunesse Jackson, Account Executive, Sponsorship Sales
How long have you been a Skifter: 6 months
Department: Sales
Location: Bronx, NY
Favorite part of Skift: Working for such a well-respected and loved company alongside such passionate, accomplished, smart, creative and kind coworkers. Skifters are always willing to lend a helping hand and share a breadth of travel industry knowledge.
Favorite memory of Skift: Celebrating the conclusion of Future of Lodging Forum with karaoke in NYC and spending the last night of the company retreat in Puerto Rico party-hopping!
Dream destination: Santorini, Greece
Diana Nay, Customer Success Manager
How long have you been a Skifter: 1.5 year
Department: Subscriptions
Location: Utah some days, California other days, France at heart
Favorite part of Skift: This entire team of smart, genuine, unique, and convivial people.
Favorite memories of Skift: Being tricked by Regina to Peloton at 11pm after SGF and laughing the entire time because Mike was cycling in jeans, and “discretely” sharing with Anne my engagement at the Farm-to-Table dinner experience in PR and having the entire company find out less than 5 minutes later.
Dream destination: Southern Alps, New Zealand. Just look it up.
The Team’s Favorite Memories
Hanging out in NYC after the inaugural Future of Lodging event. Darren and Kate on a mission to find local Old San Juan gems. Enjoying each other’s company, in a new office space (aka paradise!). Wouter, Seth, and Kate in the UAE desert before Megatrends 2020 in Abu Dhabi. Giana, Priya, Amy, and Regina cheesing at our company retreat. Around the world and back again – this one is from Skift Forum Asia in Singapore. ‘Twas the night before Skift Forum Europe, and Team Skift was at a local London pub enjoying a pint. The subscriptions team shares a laugh. A night out in Old San Juan. The Dev Team rocking their Skift shirts on the streets of PR.
The Daily Newsletter
Our daily coverage of the global travel industry. Written by editors and analysts from across Skift’s brands.