MECS+R Global Associate Program

Carolyn J. Feimster, CRX, CMD, is the Founder and President of CJF MARKETING INTERNATIONAL with offices in Hollywood, Florida, and North Brunswick, New Jersey, USA. The company’s primary focus is on developing results-oriented programs to enhance the marketing, tourism development, business development, customer service, and retail productivity of shopping/dining/entertainment destinations, downtown retail districts, cities, and other commercial properties, attractions and organizations. Additionally, CJF Marketing International offers marketing training programs and seminars, such as customer service and retail tourism training for developers, municipalities, shopping center associations, development agencies and retailers. Feimster currently works with such notable properties as Fifth + Broadway Nashville, a mixed-use center under construction with the country’s first and only National Museum of African American Music; Old Town in Kissimmee/Orlando, FL; and the Outlets at Tejon in Southern CA. Recent clients include Madison Avenue Business Improvement District in NYC; the Seaport District in NYC; Faneuil Hall Marketplace/Quincy Market in Boston, MA; Brookfield Place NY; the Town of Surfside, FL, for which she developed its five-year strategic tourism plan; and the Alliance for Downtown New York – a Business Improvement District, for which she developed customer service programs for its employees and worked on their tourism-outreach projects. She has also effectively created innovative brands, “Historic Shopping & Dining Attractions” and SHOP * DINE * PLAY * USA to effectively leverage client resources. The most recent achievement is her new platform, Investment Tourism, which was created with her South Florida partner, RMA (Redevelopment Management Associates). It is designed to not only bring visitors to a destination through the traditional channels, but to also offer an untapped potential of converting those visitors into investors. Investment Tourism is defined as “The process of identifying and marketing to visitors traveling to or already within a destination who may be potential investors in economic opportunities – from buying a second home, to opening or relocating a business, to investing in major development or redevelopment projects.” Investment Tourism effectively connects the dots between Economic Development and Tourism by clearly defining what “Tourism as an Economic Development Tool” really means. Her international work has taken her to many places around the globe including Dubai multiple times where she taught Level 2 Marketing Courses for the JTR School for Professional Development, as well as many other classes for the Middle East Council of Shopping Centres. Additional international work has taken her to Egypt, Kuwait, Russia, India, Istanbul, Prague, Warsaw, London, Bangkok, Taipei, South Korea, Latin America and the Caribbean. Additionally, she has been to Shanghai and Beijing twice with the Brand USA Sales Missions, and to Berlin many years for ITB, the world’s largest travel trade show. For a complete list of clients and services offered, please visit www.CJFMarketingInternational.com. Feimster has been active with the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) and a volunteer for nearly four decades, including being the recipient of the Trustees Distinguished Service Award in 2000. Less than 120 people world-wide have received this award since the annual recognition began in 1988. She was among the first to receive ICSC’s newest designation, the CRX, Certified Retail Property Executive. She has taught and lectured world-wide for ICSC, served on numerous committees and has chaired conferences. She was awarded the Shopping Tourism Person of the Year Award in 2003 from Shop America Alliance and sits on their Advisory Committee. She was recently appointed to the University of Florida Eric Friedheim Tourism Institute Advisory Board to help shape the future of meaningful research that our industry can effectively utilize. She is the 2011 and 2018 Past-President of NY SKAL International, a global travel and tourism organization. She has received many SASI awards (Shop America Salutes Innovation) which includes an Exclusive Shopping Promotion with multiple partners comprising of Hainan Airlines from China, MA Office of Travel & Tourism and the Outlets at Assembly Row. The entry was awarded “Best in Show for 2016”. She has also received SASIs for the Hurricane Sandy Relief Efforts for the Seaport Museum in Lower Manhattan; the Historic Shopping & Dining Attractions brand; the launch of the tourism program for Gulfstream Park in Miami, a thoroughbred racetrack, casino and a shopping/dining village; hotel shopping packages; and sandestination, the visitor brand for The Sandestin Alliance which included the Sandestin Golf & Beach Resort, the Sandestin Hilton Hotel, two Marriott properties and four shopping centers. Ms. Feimster is a graduate of the University of Florida with a Bachelor of Science degree in Journalism and Communications.