Travel Michigan Vice President Dave Lorenz has been named the 2023 national State Tourism Director of the Year.
“Dave is a tremendous steward of Michigan’s diverse and thriving travel industry,” says U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Geoff Freeman in a news release. “His dynamic approach to marketing the Great Lakes State has been highly successful, creating meaningful benefits for the economy and people of Michigan in an increasingly competitive domestic travel market.”
The honor was announced at the U.S. Travel Association’s annual Educational Seminar for Tourism Organizations (ESTO) conference held recently in Savannah, Georgia. U.S. Travel’s National Council of State Tourism Directors votes on the award each year prior to the conference, attended by more than 1,000 destination marketing professionals. Candidates are nominated by state and territory tourism directors, with a slate of three finalists presented for selection by ballot.
“This has touched me more than I can say,” Lorenz says. “As I reflect on this past year and the many challenges that our team has encountered, it makes me more appreciative of my coworkers, our agency partners, our many local destination friends, and especially of my wife who has allowed me to be away from home so much to do all I can to help the people of the state I love.”
Joining the Michigan Economic Development Corporation 21 years ago, Lorenz became vice president in 2015. Since then, the state tourism director has guided Michigan’s travel industry through a significant revitalization.
In 2022, Lorenz pivoted Travel Michigan’s marketing strategy to promote more experiences during the competitive post-pandemic domestic leisure travel surge. According to the news release, an outside study found Travel Michigan’s advertising influenced nearly 2.1 million leisure trips to the state in 2022, generating $3.1 billion in spending and more than $195 million in state tax revenue. That’s an 11:1 return on investment and the highest in Travel Michigan’s history.
Michigan’s state tourism director has also been leading efforts to increase accessible travel options across the state while focusing on inclusivity through new marketing initiatives. Travel Michigan invested in a website promoting accessible travel options and recently launched a grant program to encourage local destinations to enhance accessibility. Lorenz is also an advocate for sustainable travel, championing the expansion of the state’s electric vehicle infrastructure.
Among his team’s major accomplishments, Lorenz cites “our work to evolve the way we present the brand, keeping it relevant and inspiring while also making it clear that all are welcome in Pure Michigan.” He’s proud of helping to spur development of cruising in the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence region as well as building partnerships with brands like Ford and Coca-Cola.
“It’s not often that you can make a living while helping to improve the lives of so many,” Lorenz says. “This is not a job to me. It’s a mission—to make a difference.”
