Maritz, Inc. To Pass From Father to Son

<B> Maritz, Inc. To Pass From Father to Son</B>

By Sarah Welt

Bill Maritz, chairman and chief executive officer of St. Louis-based Maritz Inc., is about to give himself a 70th birthday present. On November 10, he will pass the CEO title to his son, Steve.

For customers, the switch to the heir will not be overly apparent. Steve already serves as president and chief operating officer and he will continue those responsibilities while adding finance, law, human resources and information technology to his plate. Bill Maritz will remain chairman of the board.

"It is my plan to continue my dad's tradition of being very involved with customers," said Steve Maritz. "And I look forward to meeting more travel managers and travel clients in the months ahead."

The younger Maritz already "has been integral in getting more corporate business" for the agency, and has been responsible for running the Performance Improvement Business, said Jack O'Neill, vice president of airline partnerships for Maritz Travel Co.

Steve also has served as chairman of the board of American Express Incentive Services--the joint venture Maritz has with Amex to produce an incentive card (<I>BTN,</I> Jan. 26)--in which Maritz has the controlling interest.

Maritz said the joint venture with Amex is going well. "We have, clearly, the finest award products in the industry and a great working relationship in this joint venture. We look forward to substantial growth in the years ahead and are on plan in 1998."

As for plans for running the company, Maritz said, "We intend to continue to grow Maritz Inc. in general and Maritz Travel Co. in particular through a combination of selective acquisitions and strong internal growth, investing in our people and technologies."

Maritz also is moving forward on newer challenges facing travel agencies. "We have built our technology to be able to establish direct connections to many suppliers," he said. On the bulk buying front, "We are also evaluating inventory positions, but have not taken that step at this time.