Four join Marketing Cheshire board

Marketing Cheshire, the newly formed investment and tourism body, has strengthened its board with the appointment of four new directors.

The new board members at the organisation, which is responsible for place marketing and promotion, as well as traditional tourist board support, are:

Dennis Dunn, pro vice chancellor for all international affairs at Manchester Metropolitan University and Dean of MMU Cheshire, where he has overseen a £70m transformation of the Crewe campus

Roger Gorham, director of Bride Hall Holdings, responsible for the asset management of its investment portfolio, including the Grosvenor shopping centre in Chester

Cllr Jamie Macrae, Conservative cabinet member and portfolio holder for prosperity at Cheshire East Council, and a chartered architect who has worked in construction

Cllr Stuart Parker, Conservative portfolio holder and executive member for culture and recreation on Cheshire West & Chester Council, with 25 years' experience in the environmental sector

The appointment of the new board members was welcomed by Edward Pysden, chairman of Marketing Cheshire. He said: "These appointments to the board will make the organisation even stronger; each has a wealth of experience and knowledge that we can draw upon.

"We believe we are well placed to help drive investment and to continue to make great strides in attracting more business and people to Cheshire and Warrington."

Gorham said: "These are challenging but exciting times for Cheshire and Warrington and Marketing Cheshire has a key role to play in ensuring the future prosperity of the sub-region and its communities."

Chris Brown, chief executive of Marketing Cheshire, added: "We have all the right ingredients in Cheshire and Warrington to drive economic growth; the aim is to get that message across loudly and clearly to potential investors all over the world."

Marketing Cheshire is leading on the two-day Celebrate Cheshire business expo event at Chester Racecourse in September, which will promote the area to potential investors.

Marketing Cheshire is the organisation's overall corporate brand, while Visit Chester and Visit Cheshire will be retained as consumer-facing brands. Two new brands – Invest in Cheshire and Live in Cheshire – are also being launched with a website being created to go live in the autumn.