Continuing on its path of strengthening the commercial organization increasing the level of integration through the business, Costa Cruises has announced an evolution of its commercial structure.
In the context of an important growth of the commercial area and with the aim of ensuring the creation of ever greater value, Francesco Muglia takes the new role of Chief Commercial Officer and including under his responsibility, with a global scope, the areas of Marketing, Communication, Trade Marketing, Sales, On Board Revenues.
Reporting directly to Francesco, Luigi Stefanelli takes on the new role of Vice President Worldwide Sales. He will be responsible for Costa’s commercial activities in all markets of the Southern Europe Region (Italy, France, Spain, Portugal), which he will continue to manage directly, as well as DACH (Germany, Switzerland, Austria), the Americas (North and South America), and International Markets (Northern and Eastern Europe and emerging markets).
“I am thrilled about Luigi’s appointment following his excellent work in the main source markets. Luigi is a key partner in defining the commercial strategy and I am convinced he can give a great boost to Costa’s commercial development and the execution of our strategy”, said Francesco Muglia, Chief Commercial Officer of Costa Cruises.
Luigi Stefanelli, 39, from Naples, joined Costa in Genoa in 2012 in the Pricing & Revenue Management department. Since then, he has held increasingly responsible roles in various countries where the company operates. He first served as Business Development & Pricing Director for the Asia Pacific & Australia region, spending three years in Shanghai. Upon returning to Europe, he became General Manager for the Costa and AIDA brands in Austria & Switzerland, and later General Manager for Central Europe. Since 2019, he has gradually taken on responsibilities for Spain & Portugal, France, and Italy, becoming Associate Vice President for the Southern Europe Region in 2023.
“I am deeply honored by this new appointment and look forward to achieving excellent results with a fantastic team of professionals, contributing together to Costa’s success,” said Luigi Stefanelli, Vice President Worldwide Sales of Costa Cruises. “Over the years, my experience in various countries allowed me to develop a broad commercial vision, based on a deep understanding of different markets and their distribution systems,” he added.