Just Like The Old Days
“It’s like the old days,” marvelled one guest at TravelBrands’ Toronto appreciation event April 12, reports Michael Baginski in this week’s digital edition of Travel Courier.
Big place (the Congress Centre), big crowd (over 700 agents), 70 suppliers (for a trade show), food (but, alas, no Jamaica patties) and wine (of course)…
Even TravelBrands called it “epic.”
And this after similar (though slightly smaller) events in Vancouver and Calgary, and ones that at press time were yet to come in Montreal in Halifax – a cross-country total of close to 2,000 agents in all.
“What an amazing turnout. The support from our travel partners was overwhelming! We are on top of the world and cannot describe how happy we are to have such incredible backing from both our travel agent and supplier partners,” said TravelBrands CEO Zeina Gedeon of the Toronto event.
“It’s been a tough year for TravelBrands as we all know,” co-owner Frank DeMarinis conceded to suppliers before the doors opened, alluding to company’s recent restructuring under creditor protection, and added, “We want to thank you for sticking with us.”
He stated, “During the CCAA, we wanted to be sure to protect all our suppliers and we came through on that!”
Dozens of suppliers, from WestJet to Bahia Principe, and some from out of country, like the UK’s Premium Tours, were on hand, manning trade show booths in order to connect with agents.
But it was Gedeon who declared the evening’s real theme: “Tonight is about you!” she told agents. Similarly, she pointed to milestone anniversaries for many of the TravelBrands brands — 60 for Holiday House, 45 for Sunquest, 30 for Intair and 25 for Encore Cruises, and declared, “Without you, they wouldn’t be here today.”
Gedeon and speakers, including VP Nino Montagnese, took the opportunity to update attendees on changes at the new-look tour company, including more integration and consolidation of the brands under the TravelBrands umbrella, with the total number of brands now at eight.
The unification of branding with new logo art is the just the first sign of the changes.
For the full story, check out this week’s digital edition of Travel Courier by clicking here.
