This week, TravelAge West and Travel Weekly’s annual Global Travel Marketplace West (GTM West) conference brought together a record number of top travel advisors and suppliers from the U.S. and Canada — a true feat after two years of travel restrictions, closed borders, lockdowns and corporate event cancellations.
Advisors were hand-selected to attend the event and met strict qualifications to do so; among them, that they have to book a minimum of $800,000 in annual sales, have a global book of business and provide supplier references. It’s a model that’s unique to GTM West and its sister event, GTM Flagship, which will take place in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. from July 28-30.
An Emphasis on Travel Advisor Appreciation
This year’s event put the spotlight on travel advisors in a unique way: Since the conference took place over International Travel Advisor Appreciation Day (May 4), each supplier attendee chipped in to cover the cost of the last evening’s “Appreci80s”-themed dinner reception to show their support for their trade partners.
A presentation — with messages for attending travel advisors from each attending supplier — ran on a loop during that final night’s event.
“The month of May is an important month to us because it's Travel Advisor Appreciation Month (crowd goes wild)! Without the support and dedication from everyone in this room, we wouldn't be where we are today,” read American Queen Voyages’ message.
“Being a travel advisor during the past couple of years has been a rollercoaster,” read a message from the Globus Family of Brands and Avalon Waterways. “Borders opening and closing. Ever-changing travel requirements. Bookings revving up, slowing down, revving up, slowing down. Moving clients from 2020 to 2021 to 2022. You should be extremely proud of yourself — you’ve made it! You are the backbone and the heart of the travel industry. You care for and protect your clients. You are there for the good times and the bad.”
Borders opening and closing. Ever-changing travel requirements. Bookings revving up, slowing down, revving up, slowing down … You are the backbone and the heart of the travel industry.
Building Strong Relationships Between Travel Agents and Suppliers
Mary Pat Sullivan, senior vice president of marketing for Northstar Travel Group (the parent company of Travel Weekly and TravelAge West) said that attending suppliers were pleased with both the quality and professionalism of attending advisors.
“The common theme of building a strong business together was evident as we watched all those meetings happen and all those connections be created,” she said. “I think, collectively, those of us in the travel industry today are grateful for the privilege to help the world get back together and that was so evident at GTM West.”
Jacqueline Hurst, director of trade recruitment and engagement for Northstar Travel Group, added that she believes that the timing of the event “could not have been better” as advisors are now receiving numerous new travel requests as we emerge out of the pandemic.
“Travel advisors need these supplier connections to fulfill the pent-up demand,” she said. “With a record number of both travel advisor and supplier attendees this year, GTM West brought the right people together in a supportive environment to rebuild and to make our industry stronger than ever.”
Hurst also shared that just one year ago she was worried about the future of the industry.
“With cruise and international travel stalled for such a long time, I wondered how many travel agencies and advisors would make it through the pandemic intact,” she said. “As it turns out, I didn't need to worry at all.”
In fact, most attending advisors are already on track to beat their 2019 sales.
Travel Advisors Reflect on This Year's Event
One first-time attendee, Dominique Barba, owner of Bliss Travel Service, had this to say after the event:
“This was my first time attending, and hands down the best conference I have ever done,” she said. “There was such a high caliber of agents/suppliers that the synergy was amazing … I received so many wonderful gifts from this conference, but the biggest one is having that fire in my belly back which had been snuffed by the pandemic.”
“GTM has helped me grow my business immensely,” added Kim DalPonte of Pixie Dust & Paradise Travel, Inc. “It’s made me broaden my horizons. I've always focused on family travel, but now I'm doing everything. And I'm rebranding due to GTM so that my clients know I can service all their travel needs. What’s even more special is that suppliers and advisors I’ve met at GTM are helping me with my rebrand.”
Next year’s GTM West will take place from July 11-13, 2022, at Hilton Lake Las Vegas Resort & Spa in Henderson, Nev.
The Details
GTM West
