Pitchup.com appoints German Markets Sales Manager

New role to further drive European expansion

Outdoor accommodation specialist Pitchup.com has announced the appointment of a new manager for German-speaking countries.

Waltraud Waidhofer (known as Val), took up the newly created role this month to boost business across Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Val has lived in London since 2006 and is based at the Pitchup.com head office in west London.

Austrian-born Val brings a wealth of experience to the position, having founded marketing group Top Camping Austria, a portfolio of 15 luxury campsites, in 1996. As a consultant for the group, Val created and executed communication campaigns, including social media and email marketing strategies.

For 20 years she was the media representative in Austria for a publisher of German camping magazines; and she worked in close collaboration for over 15 years with trade publishers in Germany, Switzerland and Italy. 

Pitchup.com founder Dan Yates said: “Val joins Pitchup.com at an exciting time for us as we celebrate our fifth anniversary and continue to expand our business at home and overseas.”

He added: “With her unrivalled experience in marketing across German-speaking countries, Val will play a pivotal role in expanding our operation in Europe.”

Val Waidhofer said: “I look forward to introducing our clients to exciting new outdoor holiday opportunities: British people love skiing in the Alps and it so happens that many German, Austrian and Swiss sites are close to winter sports facilities. Many sites offer spa facilities which means they make great year-round destinations. My love for the outdoors started in my childhood in the area of Austria where The Sound of Music was filmed, and I continue to spend my own holidays camping and staying in mobile homes around the UK and Europe.”

For more information visit www.pitchup.com 

- ends -

For media information:

Cass Helstrip, Samantha Marsh or Rob Bates at White Tiger PR

Cass.helstrip@whitetigerpr.com 07968 255464

Samantha.marsh@whitetigerpr.com 07711 265666

Rob.bates@whitetigerpr.com 07957 316491

About Pitchup.com

Founded in 2009 by former lastminute.com man, Dan Yates, multi-award winning Pitchup.com is a free guide to all types of outdoor accommodation in the UK, Ireland, France, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Croatia, Luxembourg, Austria, Poland and Switzerland. Pitchup.com, which currently lists over 5,800 sites, provides users with a simple platform in which they can search and book an outdoor holiday with total ease: the customer journey from landing on the homepage through to booking a holiday can be completed in as little as four pages.  The site also goes beyond traditional searches by allowing users to search for accommodation based on more than 80 criteria, such as adults only and campfires allowed, and view nearby events, Good Pub Guide pubs and VisitBritain attractions.  It’s also possible to check out water bathing water quality in the surrounding area with data provided by the European Environment Agency.  Users can also search on the offers page to find the best deals available.

In 2013 Pitchup.com became the first business of its type to launch a bookable mobile app and site, making the site easily accessible to users of mobile and tablet devices.  The mobile site, m.pitchup.com, now accounts for 19% of bookings.

Pitchup.com enables users to search for all types of parks and sites from the major brands right through to one-off campsites and unique outdoor accommodation options, which may not have previously had a web presence.

Awards include Best UK Travel Website of the Year at the British Travel Press Awards 2011, and most recently Best Travel / Leisure / Sports / Mobile Strategy / Campaign at the Marketing on Mobile Awards 2014.