Disney's Aulani Gets New General Manager

Pacific Business News is reporting that Djuan Rivers, who oversaw the development and opening of Disney’s Aulani resort on Oahu, is leaving Hawaii for an executive position at Disneyland Paris.

Elliott Mills (pictured right) has been named vice president and general manager of the resort, which opened in August. Mills, Aulani’s managing director, was formerly general manager at the Kauai Marriott Resort and Outrigger Reef on the Beach in Waikiki.

Rivers, who helped open the Paris resort for the Walt Disney Co., will become vice president of hotels and business solutions there, overseeing seven resort hotels, convention centers and golf operations, he said. He will transition to his new role in France over the next several weeks, he said.

Rivers was named vice president of Disney’s first Hawaii resort nearly three years ago, before Disney began construction of the resort on 20 acres at Ko Olina Resort. "Djuan Rivers and I both opened the property together and had similar aspirations—keeping the true cultural values of the place alive," he told Travel Agent. "It’s been a great run so far, and we'll continue listening to guest feedback."

Since the resort has opened, he says, the team is working to meet different expectations from different demographics. "We knew overall where the market mix would come from," he said. "Now we're taking those key learnings and applying them."