The ACC Liverpool Group has appointed Kate Nicholls OBE – the CEO of UKHospitality – as the new chair of its board.
The organisation confirmed that she will take over from its previous chair Max Steinberg CBE, who has reached the end of his three-year fixed-term contract.
Nicholls is head of UKHospitality which represents over 740 companies operating around 100,000 venues across hospitality in England, Scotland, and Wales.
Nicholls was recently confirmed as a member of the relaunched Events Industry Board (EIB), a working group which supports delivery of the government’s Tourism Recovery Plan to attract more business events to the UK.
Nicholls recently publicly called upon the government to introduce a new hospitality business tax rate to aid the sector’s recovery. She was made an OBE in a New Year Honours list in 2022 that recognised hospitality figures who made significant contributions during the pandemic.
Faye Dyer, managing director of The ACC Liverpool Group, operators of the M&S Bank Arena, Exhibition Centre Liverpool and ACC Liverpool, said: “We are very grateful to Max for his support over the past three years, particularly during what has been a tough period for the events industry.
“Kate is very well-respected in the hospitality industry and her wealth of experience will contribute significantly, not only to The ACC Liverpool Group but to the city as a whole, as we emerge from the pandemic’s detrimental effects on the visitor economy.”
Nicholls said: “Through my networks and industry insight, I am ready to provide the team with the best possible support and guidance as the business moves forward through recovery and on to the next phase of its development.”