Windstar Cruises Expands Commercial Team with New Sales Hires

With two new ships on the way, Windstar Cruises is bolstering its sales team with two new sales hires, as well as a new vice president of revenue.

William (Kam) Kammerman joins the team as strategic business development manager of host agencies. He will manage the cruise line’s relationships with all host agencies, as well as expand and enhance those relations, including providing training to drive host agency sales growth.

Kammerman brings several years of experience managing the relationships between travel advisors and cruise lines, having most recently served as strategic account manager of host agencies for MSC Cruises. He’s also worked for Norwegian Cruise Lines as a direct sales manager. He is based in St. Petersburgh, Fla.

Michelle Pharr joins Windstar as regional sales manager for the South Central region of the U.S. She brings 14 years of experience in the travel industry to the role, including her most recent stint as a strategic account manager at Royal Caribbean. Her start in the travel business followed her mother’s path – as a travel advisor – specializing in destination weddings and honeymoons. Her territory incudes: Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Colorado, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Missouri, Kansas and the Dakotas.

“Kam and Michelle both have outstanding skill sets in the travel trade sector, and with direct experience in the cruise industry, they are positioned to quickly make a positive impact on Windstar’s support for the trade side of our business,” said Joe Jiffo, Windstar’s director of sales.

Also joining Windstar – as vice president of revenue – is Victor Valencia, who will drive strategic growth, oversee all revenue and pricing functions, and optimize profitable growth. He most recently served as head of finance at Amazon.