5 Future Leaders to Watch List, 2024

Attendees at the seventh-annual Future Leaders in Travel Retreat — an event for travel advisors aged 40-and-under, and powered by TravelAge West — were truly impressive. This year’s entrepreneurs accounted for more than $80 million in travel sales, with almost half of the attendees expecting to close at least $1 million in sales for 2024.

So, when it came to selecting the candidates for our fourth-annual list of five Future Leaders to watch, careful considerations had to be made. These advisors stood out not only on paper, but in person, too. They demonstrate commitment to their clients and colleagues, and a passion for both the career and the industry at large.

Jessica Brown

Advising Since 2023. Projected Sales: $200,000.

Logging into Clubhouse, the audio-based mobile app that had its moment during the pandemic, was pivotal for Jessica Brown, a former employee in the mortgage industry.

In the travel chatrooms, she met many travel advisors, including one who became her “travel advisor godmother” and encouraged her to select a host agency and get started.

Brown is now a graduate of Gifted Travel Network’s Travel MBA training program (and a member of its Accelerate mentorship initiative), and she finally feels she can use her natural talent as the “go-to person among friends and family for travel itineraries and recommendations” and her passion to help others from similar backgrounds travel the world.

A trip to Disneyland when she was 8 years old exposed her to people from different countries and was life-changing for her, setting off a goal to become a global citizen, she says

“But due to a lack of education and access, it wasn’t until I was around 30 that I really started exploring,” Brown said.

I am determined to be a trailblazer for diversity and inclusion within the industry, adding new faces and perspectives to the tapestry of the American traveler.

Making up for lost time, Brown says she hopes to use the next 10 years to build a thriving business where she can use her financial success from her agency, SmithBrown Signature Travel, to give back to the Black community. Her goal is to start a foundation that offers travel opportunities for Black youth, single parents and caretakers.

“I believe travel can change lives, and I want to make sure those who might not have the chance to explore the world can experience its wonders,” she said. “I am determined to be a trailblazer for diversity and inclusion within the industry, adding new faces and perspectives to the tapestry of the American traveler.”

Janel Carnero

Advising Since: 2022. Projected Sales: $2.8 million.

Some people are just “hashtag goals” — and they know how to set them, too.

Last year, Janel Carnero sold more than $1.6 million in bookings, an impressive number for her first full year as an advisor. But this year, she has nearly doubled her sales, showing her determination to one day be in the top 1% of travel advisors.

Carnero came to advising with plenty of travel knowledge (she was a regional manager at a hotel for nearly a decade, and has experience building transportation companies), but she still chose to heavily invest in her education as an advisor. To start, she completed a full year of the Embark Beyond apprentice program under the direction of agency partners Anne Scully, Julie Danziger and Jack Ezon.

Then, she supplemented her education with the full Virtuoso Training Academy, 30 hours of additional curriculums from Virtuoso and two online luxury travel advisor trainings. And that’s not all — she still devotes at least five hours per week to learning a new ultra-luxury partner destination or brand.

She shows consistency and commitment not just in her pursuit of education, but also in how she runs her business.

RELATED: 5 Future Leaders to Watch List, 2023

“Every three months, I create a new business plan broken down to a weekly goal, and each week, I dedicate myself to meeting that goal,” she said. “I do not just look at meeting the goal and take a break; I push myself week after week to increase the amount sold. Doing the small things that matter day in and day out can sometimes be forgotten, but the value in every small detail is huge.”

Every three months, I create a new business plan broken down to a weekly goal, and each week, I dedicate myself to meeting that goal.

Her attention to her craft has not gone unnoticed. Carnero has been named as a top new producer at Embark Beyond, has been recognized as the Best Travel Specialist in New Mexico (where she lives) by local communities and has been named a 2024 Travel + Leisure Rising Star Advisor.

She is a people person and deeply passionate about humanitarian causes (she sits on multiple advisory boards dedicated to the plight of women and children). This is apparent in her work, as well, where she has loved mentoring her peers and speaking on panels to help other advisors learn from her early success.

“Being able to help others grow along with me has been one of my biggest blessings,” she said. “I am dedicated beyond belief to propelling not only my own business, but the industry itself.”

Mallory Dumond

Advising Since: 2019. Projected Sales: $2 million.

Everything happens for a reason, and Mallory Dumond is proof. She says she never felt at ease in her previous career — where her entrepreneurial talents went untapped — but it wasn’t until her son’s daycare closed that she quit her job to stay at home and “dive head-first into the travel industry.”

“It was then that I realized I could combine my love of travel, family and business to grow something that not only could provide for my family, but would also be something that I enjoy,” she said. “I have never looked back."

In just five years serving couples, schools, families and corporate groups, Dumond is one of the top 20 advisors at Travelmation, and is on track to sell more than $2 million this year. She is also a pillar of her local community, and has been recognized four times as the No. 1 travel agent in the Readers’ Choice awards for Goldsboro News-Argus; three times as Best Travel Agent for Best of the Boot in Wayne County, North Carolina; and once as a Trailblazer (a top businessperson under the age of 40) for Business North Carolina.

It was then that I realized I could combine my love of travel, family and business to grow something that not only could provide for my family, but would also be something that I enjoy.

Dumond credits her success to her family’s shared passion for travel and her desire to “constantly learn, grow and expand my knowledge and connections with others in the industry.”

She already pays it forward by raising money for her nonprofit — which helps fund all-expenses-paid vacations for first responders — and hosting her agency’s supplier exposition, where she curates 90-plus suppliers for some 1,000 advisors. But she’s just getting started: She hopes to start a mentorship program at her agency and double her sales to fully fund her kids’ college tuitions.

Samuel Johnson

Advising Since: 2023. Projected Sales: $1.2 million.

It’s not rare for people to graduate college and then get a job that sets them up for their profession — but that is not the common arc for most advisors.

That’s where Samuel Johnson’s story is different. He only graduated last year from the University of Georgia, with a degree in hospitality management, but is already operating as a full-time advisor with Prescription Travel (an independent affiliate with Montecito Village Travel), where he started out as an intern and is now a co-owner.

Indeed, everything for the 23-year-old is moving full-speed ahead. For one, his sales have jumped from $100,000 last year to a projected $1.2 million this year. And while many wait to give back, he has already launched an internship program with his business partner at his alma mater’s hospitality program, where he has coached 12 interns about this career (he says that eight want to be full-time advisors).

He credits his early success to growing up in resort town Big Sky, Montana, where he held many hospitality jobs, including as chef concierge during the opening summer and winter at Montage Big Sky, which exposed him to the work of travel advisors. 

He says he loves this career because it allows him to interact with clients and coordinate with multiple vendors. He hopes to one day manage supplier relations for a network of trusted travel advisors.

Brittany Taylor

Advising Since: 2018. Projected Sales: $2.8 million.

Brittany Taylor’s success as an advisor is a masterclass in the career’s best practices. First, she is well-traveled, having visited more than 45 countries on six continents. She has also embraced mentorship, having been trained by Shelby Donley, the founder of her agency, Camelback Odyssey Travel, who inspired her aspirations to serve on top advisory boards and rank among the top travel advisors.

And Taylor is well on her way, etching a name for herself as a specialist in adventure, active and eco-conscious travel, with membership in the Adventure Travel Trade Association and the Virtuoso Adventure Community. She is also a regular at specialist trainings and top conferences such as Virtuoso Travel Week, Pure Life Experiences and ILTM, making it no surprise that she was recognized as a 2021 Travel + Leisure Rising Star Advisor.

I believe travel is the best education we can provide ourselves with, and the exposure to other ways of life enriches our understanding and fosters our acceptance.

She has also strategically promoted herself as an Africa specialist, and became an expert in the region by visiting nine countries on the continent over the past few years.

Her passion for travel is one that is made clear by what she says and does — and how she thinks about the travel industry.

“I believe travel is the best education we can provide ourselves with, and the exposure to other ways of life enriches our understanding and fosters our acceptance,” she said. “I plan to continue to advocate for more sustainable and eco-conscious travel practices and be a part of shaping a more accessible, enriching future for travelers.”