Louisville, KY – Karen Williams was named the permanent president and CEO of the Louisville Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Williams had retired as executive vice president in 2012 after 23 years with the bureau, but came back in January as the interim president and CEO when Jim Wood stepped down.
Williams’ duties include representing Louisville at various exhibition industry events. She has been a familiar face within the industry. She served on the board of directors of Meeting Professionals International and Destination Marketing Association International. She has also been active in the Convention Industry Council and was most-recently a destination-marketing consultant.
Williams will also be in the forefront of a planned expansion and renovation of the downtown Kentucky International Convention Center, which is ranked 65th on the Trade Show Executive World’s Top Convention Centers report with 200,000 square feet of prime exhibit space.
The planned $175 project hit a snag in the Kentucky state senate this Winter when $56 million in bond money was cut from the proposed state budget. Williams told the Louisville Courier-Journal, “We will do everything we can to convince them to put it back into the budget.”
Reach Karen Williams at (800) 626-5646 or kwilliams@gotolouisville.com
