Industry News
Vail Resorts announced on Friday, November 21, that Celeste Burgoyne—currently President of the Americas and Global Guest Innovation at lululemon—has been appointed Executive Vice President & Chief Revenue Officer, effective January 26, 2026. In this newly created senior leadership position, Burgoyne will oversee the company’s marketing function, lead all aspects of the guest journey and digital experience, and be directly responsible for the majority of Vail Resorts’ revenue.
“We are thrilled to welcome Celeste, a proven business leader with a long track record of driving growth and long-term guest loyalty at lululemon,” said Vail Resorts Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer Rob Katz. “Celeste’s deep appreciation for the connection between brand, guest experience, and revenue will be critical as we continue to reimagine how we connect with our guests, reignite our resort brands, and accelerate growth in both lift revenue and our ancillary lines of business.”
At lululemon, Burgoyne currently oversees all channel- and customer-facing aspects of the company’s North American business, including e-commerce, CRM, marketing, retail store experience, and real estate, with direct responsibility for more than $7.5 billion in revenue. She also leads global guest-experience innovation and spearheaded the launch of lululemon’s membership program. Since joining the company in 2006—when the brand had fewer than ten U.S. stores—Burgoyne has held numerous leadership roles and played a central part in its expansion to more than 750 stores and over $10 billion in global revenue. Before lululemon, she spent ten years at Abercrombie & Fitch during a period of significant growth.
“It is an honour to join Vail Resorts, not just because of the respect I have for Rob, the management team, and this incredible business which has so much opportunity ahead, but also because of the passion that my family and I have for the experience it provides,” Burgoyne said. “I have spent countless days enjoying Whistler Blackcomb, in both the summer and winter, so I know firsthand what the Company’s mission of ‘Experience of a Lifetime’ means to skiers, snowboarders, and all their guests. I look forward to being a part of the Vail Resorts team and this phase of growth and transformation.”
Burgoyne will be based in Vancouver, British Columbia, where she currently resides with her family.
Burgoyne’s appointment is widely seen as a strategic move by Rob Katz to elevate guest experience—a recurring challenge and criticism for the company in recent years. Her career has focused on customer loyalty, membership ecosystems, brand experience, and holistic guest-journey design, areas she helped transform at lululemon. Her own LinkedIn profile highlights her passion for Whistler and mountain sports, and her background in scaling high-touch, experience-driven retail brands.
Vail Resorts founder and returned CEO Katz has indicated recently that he is trying to shift the focus back on day ticket pricing after years of pushing the subscription model on skiers and snowboarders across North America. Burgoyne’s appointment as Chief Revenue Executive aligns with his intention to improve the guest experience for all guests across its resorts. Vail Resorts has been struggling to find new revenue avenues and a falling share price has put pressure on the company to reinvent itself to not only keep share holders but more importantly visitors happy. The creation of a Chief Revenue Officer role at executive level is acknowledgement that the focus on the guest experience has been lacking and that it instead can be a key driver of growth. Bringing in an executive whose expertise is rooted in understanding and shaping guest expectations suggests Vail Resorts is aiming to strengthen service quality and rebuild skier trust.
