The Network of Entrepreneurs Selling Travel (NEST), a marketing group for independent home-based travel agencies, has had an incredible year of growth, welcoming 55 new agencies in 2024. With those agencies came $116 million in preferred partner sales — an impressive number, and one that NEST is celebrating.
Our Analysis: AI Might Alter How Some Travelers Book, But It Won't Impede Travel Advisors, Nor Their Growing Numbers
For all the talk of AI disrupting travel advisor business and rising costs keeping consumers from booking travel, the data seems to say otherwise. More people are becoming advisors (the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that 8,600 positions, on average, will be added to the field, through 2032), more consumers are looking to them for guidance, and NEST’s expansion proves that advisors are simultaneously making moves to build their professional networks, their clientele lists and their sales numbers — all of which fuel the $2 trillion travel industry. According to Future Market Insights, travel agency services were valued at $455 billion in 2023, and that number is expected to grow to $1.28 trillion by 2033. It’s a rising tide, and support organizations such as NEST are helping ensure that said tide lifts all (advisor) boats.
Fast Facts: NEST's Growth Reflects That of the Travel Industry
- NEST has grown to 516 agencies, with 55 of those added this year.
- The above represents a 12% expansion in the number of NEST's agencies over last year.
- The new agencies brought $116 million in preferred partner sales to the organization's overall sales numbers.
- According to Statista, travel is a $2 trillion industry that is only growing.
- According to MMGY, more than three-quarters of U.S. travelers plan to travel in the next year; that number is up 6% from last year.
What They Are Saying: Groups Like NEST Buoy Travel Advisor Success
“For 20 years, we’ve built a thriving community of home-based travel entrepreneurs that has become more successful with our support,” said Wayne Spector, senior vice president for NEST. “Word has gotten out about the NEST difference for agencies and the result is this incredible growth. Nothing is more satisfying to us than seeing one of our new arrivals soar once they discover the benefits we offer that you can’t find anywhere else.”
