Flexibility for travel advisors is at the root of Fora's success. The host agency launched in August 2021, but already has 500 active advisors and just celebrated a milestone of 12,000 booked trips. The company aims to destigmatize “part-time travel advisors,” and embraces both “side hustlers” and full-time advisors alike.
And its community-based approach, cohort training programs and high-end partnerships resonate with its growing number of travel-lovers-turned-advisors, many of whom are ready to take the next step in their careers.
Henley Vazquez is the co-founder of Fora and is a former travel advisor.
Credit: 2023 Fora
Fora most recently launched a new Advanced Advisor Training, which will help its top agents learn how to achieve more advanced bookings, craft a marketing strategy and better use technology to leverage their business.
In this discussion, Henley Vazquez, co-founder of Fora — and a former senior director at Indigare and the CEO and founder of Passported, a travel agency — shares more about what sets the host agency apart.
Is Fora intended for those who want to be part-time travel agents, and who consider advising to be a side hustle?
Fora was created to empower anyone with a passion for travel to earn a flexible income booking trips — not just side hustlers, but also aspiring travel entrepreneurs who want to break into the industry. Some of our advisors do it full-time, some do it part-time. We pride ourselves on our flexible approach to meet people where they’re at in life.
But is Fora only focused on travel advising as a side hustle?
Fora isn’t just for side hustlers. It’s for anyone who wants to build a lasting career booking travel, no matter if they’re full-time, part-time or somewhere in-between. For us, finding success as a travel advisor starts with being willing to hunker down and do the work.
Fora advisors can make travel guides.
Credit: 2023 Fora
If you’re dedicated, we can teach you how to become an excellent travel advisor and build a business on your own terms. It’s with this flexible approach that we’re making it possible to empower the next generation of travel advisors, by focusing on the training, the community and the support they need to succeed.
Why do you think that “hobbyist travel agents” have always been somewhat looked down upon in the industry?
"Hobby” feels like the wrong word when talking about flexible careers. [These advisors] are passionate and professional, and we know this because each advisor undergoes a traditional interview and training process, just like “traditional” travel advisors always have.
This is real work, and our Fora Advisors take that job very seriously. They receive ongoing review cycles so they can learn and grow, and receive certifications. But at the end of the day, we believe you can do that anywhere, on your own terms — and that’s the key difference.
This is real work, and our Fora Advisors take that job very seriously. They receive ongoing review cycles so they can learn and grow, and receive certifications. But at the end of the day, we believe you can do that anywhere, on your own terms — and that’s the key difference.
A prevailing attitude toward part-timers is that they could give the profession a “bad name” because they are not committing the time that is needed to do the job well. How does Fora support part-time advisors?
We take training very seriously for exactly these reasons. We train our advisors to take on as much as they have the capacity to handle, and all of our advisors prioritize professionalism in everything they do.
A lot of our advisors are starting a travel business for the first time. We’re helping them enter that world of travel entrepreneurship, and one of the key elements of success is making sure they are always client-forward. That’s why many of our Fora Advisors start with people who trust them the most: friends and family. These are people they care deeply about and have personal connections with.
The coolest part of all of this is that because they’re often starting with networks they know, they’re introducing clients to travel advisors who have never booked with an advisor before.
The coolest part of all of this is that because they’re often starting with networks they know, they’re introducing clients to travel advisors who have never booked with an advisor before. They’re actually helping build a market that previously didn’t exist, because those clients trust them over an OTA.
Being a good advisor is usually thought of as a time-consuming profession — lots of hand holding for clients, checking all the details, fixing things when travel goes wrong. What is Fora’s take on this?
There is no doubt that being a travel advisor is time-consuming for the reasons you mentioned. But that’s exactly why we help our Fora Advisors ramp up their travel businesses at a speed that works for them, and we give them the tools to learn the processes so that they feel supported along the way.
In fact, working directly with clients and suppliers is the fastest way to build skills, confidence and expertise as a travel advisor, so they’re booking travel (and earning commission) while they go through the training program. They get the support network and community of their peers to help them brainstorm, problem-solve and build their business. And our in-house experts are walking side by side with them through the whole process.
How has Fora attracted so many advisors already? What is the onboarding process?
We’re tapping into a network of people who have already been doing this work in many ways. They’re the go-to people for travel tips and they’re already putting in the time, doing the research and providing top-notch recommendations, but maybe never realized that a career in travel or as a travel advisor was available. We help them transform that passion for travel into a professional career. There’s nothing as exciting as closing that first sale, and we see how addictive that can be.
When Fora Advisors are onboarded, they join a training cohort for a month-long certification of both live and asynchronous training. The initial certification training course focuses on the basics of selling travel and building a client base, and covers everything someone needs to go from travel lover to professional advisor. They continue their education throughout their entire journey as a Fora Advisor, working their way toward pro status, as well as continuously tapping into our ongoing supplier and destination trainings.
We also have a community app — we call it Forum — where our advisors can connect directly with one another and other travel industry pros.
And finally, we have a number of in-person opportunities, from fam trips and hotel visits to our cornerstone Live Forum conference that happens every year in the fall.
This new training will also help people who are doing this part-time eventually launch full-time businesses, right?
Fora’s advanced certification is for any advisor (part-time or full-time) who wants to take their business to the next level. Over 60 days, participants dive deeper into topics that help them achieve more advanced bookings, from how to craft a marketing strategy to using technology to leverage their business.
Fora is marketing itself as a modern travel agency offering flexibility and community-based learning.
Credit: 2023 Fora
Through it all, they’re still getting the hands-on, small-group approach that Fora is known for, so they can feel truly ready to take their business to the next level, always on their own terms.
If someone knows they want to launch a travel advisor business as a full-time job, is Fora a right first step for them?
Without a doubt, yes. We meet our advisors where they’re at in their lives and offer flexible work opportunities for them — meaning that they can work as much as they want so that their role as a Fora Advisor complements their lifestyle.
We meet our advisors where they’re at in their lives and offer flexible work opportunities for them — meaning that they can work as much as they want so that their role as a Fora Advisor complements their lifestyle.
For those who are meeting the sales standards of a full-time travel advisor, that also opens up all of the perks of the traditional industry, such as conference attendance and fam trips (which are limited to our “pros”).
Since Fora is affiliated with Virtuoso, should advisors want to sell luxury travel?
Travel isn’t one size fits all, and we believe that working with a travel advisor gives a better booking experience to the client, no matter their travel style. Our advisors are encouraged to book the type of travel they are passionate about. That being said, the majority of our volume these days is at four- and five-star hotels. We just celebrated a milestone of 12,000 booked trips [by Fora Advisors] — generally, these are luxury-focused hotels and destination management companies.
Categorically, our advisors focus on a broad variety of bookings, ranging from luxury to family travel, boutique, all-inclusive, sustainable, accessible travel, LGBTQ+ friendly travel and more. We encourage them to lean into what they know and love themselves, while also teaching them about rising trends in travel and ways to satisfy a variety of clients and their unique needs.
What about those agents who want to sell Disney, cruises, all-inclusive resorts, etc.?
Absolutely. We have Fora Advisors who are experts when it comes to booking Disney experiences, cruises and/or all-inclusive resorts. But it even goes beyond that.
One thing that many travelers don’t know (and many of our advisors don’t know when they first start out) is that there are many different types of travel that can be booked beyond just hotels. Hotels are our bread and butter, of course, but we’re also seeing more and more interest in other types of travel, such as Virgin Voyages, which is bringing in a whole new type of cruising. Being at the front of rising trends like this is really exciting for us, and we love showing people new ways to travel.
What else would you like the travel industry, advisors and prospective agents to know about Fora?
We’re passionate about building a diverse community of different types of advisors with a wide range of backgrounds and expertise so that they can provide customized experiences to travelers.
We also pride ourselves on our industry relationships and partnerships, and are part of a top-notch selection of preferred partnerships. We’re working to build a travel advisor industry that’s truly a win-win-win: one that supports a small business (the travel advisor), highlights great properties and, of course, results in an amazing trip for the client.
