Jessamine County has a new tourism director whose overall goal is to increase visitor experience and revenue.

Mitchell Pearson will officially take over his new role April 16, and said his first duty will be to get out in the community and get to know the people.

“My first few weeks will be getting to know the community at large, setting up the office and leading the board in the direction for us to pursue our marketing and rebranding efforts,” Pearson said. “Over the years, I have developed great connections and working relationships within the tourism industry. I’ve been successful in my rebranding efforts and marketing skills at Prestonsburg which led to several awards across the state and even the opportunity to serve on the legislative subcommittee for tourism development in 2016.”

Working in the industry since 2006, Pearson was a high school intern for Berea Tourism and graduated from Eastern Kentucky University with a bachelor’s degree in parks and recreation administration, and a dual interest in tourism management and outdoor recreation.

Pearson has worked at the Kentucky Horse Park and Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill. He has also served as the director of Prestonsburg Tourism.

Pearson said he spent many weekends as a child visiting with his grandparents  and relatives who lived in Jessamine County.

Now, with the opportunity to work in the community he only visited growing up, Pearson will get to showcase the many attractions the town has to offer.

“The great attractions of horse farms, wineries, history, culture and so much more,” Pearson said. “‘I’m excited about working here with such an area of tremendous growth.”

Tommy Cobb, a board member for the Jessamine County Tourism Committee, told the Nicholasville City Commission he believes they will be very pleased with the new hire at last week’s meeting.

“I am confident that we have hired somebody who fully understands the tourism industry and knows it is a business, it is not just an event coordinator or anything like that,” Cobb said. “It is truly a business and he knows how to generate revenue for our community.”