Carl Sparks is president and chief executive officer of Travelocity Global. In his role, Mr. Sparks oversees a portfolio of travel brands across the globe, including: Travelocity.com, lastminute.com in Europe, and the Travelocity Partner Network which provides travel solutions to businesses.
Previously, Mr. Sparks served as president of Gilt Groupe, one of the leading online fashion and travel retailers in the United States, responsible for overseeing the business units of Gilt.com, which included the women’s, men’s, home, children’s and gifts categories.
Prior to the Gilt Groupe, Mr. Sparks spent five years implementing innovative marketing programs for Expedia Inc., serving as general manager for Hotels.com North America. He also served as chief marketing officer for Expedia.com where he was responsible for driving a $10 billion-revenue business by leading the areas of brand strategy, creative development and marketing communications.
Earlier in his career, Mr. Sparks was vice president of direct business and brand at Capital One, where he helped develop the business through direct marketing, new product development and brand strategy. Other positions include senior marketing and strategy roles at Guinness, PepsiCo and Boston Consulting Group.
Mr. Sparks currently serves on the board of directors of Vonage Holdings Corporation (NYSE: VG) and Dunkin’ Brands (NASDAQ: DNKN).
Mr. Sparks graduated summa cum laude from Princeton University and received his master’s in Business Administration with Highest Distinction from Harvard University.