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IAAPA announces new EMEA executive director

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Peter van der Schans IAAPA

Peter van der Schans will take on role from 4 April, based in the association’s Brussels office

IAAPA, the global association for the attractions industry, has announced its new executive director and vice president for the IAAPA Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) region.

Peter van der Schans will take up the post commencing 4 April 2022. The new appointment will be based in IAAPA’s regional office in Brussels, Belgium, tasked with growing the association’s membership levels. He will also help enhance member services in the region and increase participation in IAAPA events such as IAAPA Expo Europe.

The European industry event returned to normality last year with an event in Barcelona in September. This year’s IAAPA Expo Europe is scheduled to be held at the Excel Centre in London, the UK, between 12-15 September 2022.

Experienced professional

Most recently, van der Schans has worked at served as general manager of Dierenrijk, a family zoo in Mierlo, the Netherlands, as general manager. This followed his role as manager at Pathé Theatre in Nijmegen, also the Netherlands, where he helped grow attendance annual visitor count from 180,000 to 600,000.

Jacob Wahl IAAPA
Jakob Wahl

The experienced professional has also been Attractiepark Toverland‘s park manager, in the Netherlands, where he contributed to the strategic expansion of the Sevenum-based organisation with its Avalon and The Magical Valley investments.

Chief operating officer of IAAPA, Jakob Wahl says: “We are excited to welcome Peter to the IAAPA EMEA team. He comes to IAAPA with more than fifteen years of leisure industry experience from a number of attractions including theme parks, zoos, and theatres. We are excited for the perspective he can bring to the region and to the IAAPA Expo Europe show floor.”

Van der Schans brings academic achievements to the role, holding a Bachelor of Business Administration, Leisure Management from Stenden University in Leeuwarden, Netherlands.

He also completed the IAAPA Institute for Attractions Managers in 2014. In his new role, he will report directly to Wahl.

IAAPA recently announced a series of research projects designed to help the organisation to support the growth and future of the global attractions industry.

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Adam Whittaker

Adam studied Marketing and Advertising Management at Leeds Beckett University. Originally from Lancashire and now based in Norfolk, UK, you can usually find him appreciating art deco design or on a roller coaster.

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