INTRODUCING
THE NEWLY AMPLIFIED BARCELONA • SUMMER 2020
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TRAVEL
ROYAL CARIbbEAN TEAM IRELAND
A G E N T Jennifer Callister
Head of Ireland Mob: +353 86 8227010 | E mail: jcallister@rccl.com
Michelle Ryan Regional Sales Manager Ireland Mob: +353 86 1895339 | michelleryan@rccl.com
Holly Rice (née Wilkinson) Account Executive Ireland Trade Support: +44 (0)1932 834379 | hrice@rccl.com
REBOOTING THE HIGH STREET TRAVEL EXPERIENCE
CO N FER EN C E 201 9
K I LL A S H EE H OTEL , NA A S
TRAVEL A G E N T
Welcome to the Conference
REBOOTING
he world of travel has changed considerably since I took my first, tentative steps within the industry back in 1975. First there was computerisation; then legislation, quickly followed by the Internet, rationalisation and in more recent times, we’ve come to experience the phenomenon of disintermediation whereby traditional travel agents have been increasingly bypassed by consumers who are now happy to book everything — including some of their travel arrangements — via the medium of the smart phone that they hold in their hand! But the travel industry in general and travel agents in particular have always been resilient and have thus weathered all these storms in the past but are we now fast approaching the ultimate existential threat to our livelihoods and if so, what are we going to do about it?
T THE HIGH STREET TRAVEL EXPERIENCE
Table of Contents 2 3 5 6 7 9 12 15 17
Sponsor Acknowledgements Programme Details Awards Supplier Workshop General Information Advisory Board Speaker profiles Your Entertainment Testimonials and Photos from 2018 conference
The theme of this year’s conference is ‘Travel Agent 2.0 — How to Reboot the Retail Experience?’ as we seek to address the question of whether or not travel agents themselves have sufficiently evolved enough to address the needs and wants of the modern consumer? Despite the fact that Online is a 24/7 marketplace, most agents continue to open along traditional trading hours. Is this good enough? What about the look and feel of our agencies? Are they conducive places to sell travel experiences? Do they inspire confidence? If we accept that we, collectively, need to move up the value chain and start selling increasingly to the well-heeled who are cash-rich but time-poor, do we possess both the skillset and confidence to attain that goal? This year’s conference asks such questions and hopes to find some of the answers! Always at your service!
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SPONSORS Headline Sponsor Owners/managers Lunch, Friday Friday Refreshment Breaks Pre-Dinner Drinks, Friday Gala dinner entertainment, Saturday Gala Dinner Wines, Saturday 2 x Economy Tickets to Abu Dhabi Owner/Manager Dinner, Friday Saturday Lunch Martinis & Manicures Friday Dinner Wines Saturday Refreshment Breaks
Sponsor Acknowledgements Events such as this depend on the generous sponsorship that underpins much of the content featured over the course of the two-day programme. Although all our suppliers have contributed to the central funding that covers much of the main running costs, these suppliers in particular have dug deep into their pockets in order to show their appreciation for the business that you, our members generate for them year round. It is therefore only right and fitting that we should acknowledge them here. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Publisher’s Note: Whilst care has been taken in compiling the information contained in this manual, the publishers cannot accept responsibility for any errors or omissions. © Travel Centres 2019.
Pre-Dinner Drinks, Saturday 2
Friday, 8th November* 08.45 —
09.30
Registration
09.30 —
10.00
Delegate welcome & Year Review/annual report
TRAVEL A G E N T
REBOOTING THE HIGH STREET TRAVEL EXPERIENCE
10.00 —
11.30
‘Travel Agent 2.0 — How to Reboot the Retail Experience’
11.30
—
11.45
Morning refreshment break — Sponsored by Amadeus
11.45
—
12.45
‘Panning for Gold — Using Creativity as a Competitive Tool’ — with Charlie Tuxworth
12.45
—
13.00
Presentation by Adam Weatherley, Learning & Development Manager, ISME
13.00 —
14.00
Lunch — Sponsored by Aer Lingus
14.00 —
14.45
Supplier Forum. Followed by Q&A
14.45
—
15.30
‘An Overview of the Package Travel Directive’ — Juan Bueso, European Consumer Centre
15.30
—
16.00
Dermott Jewell — Policy & Council Advisor, Consumer’s Association of Ireland
16.00 —
16.15
Afternoon refreshment break — Sponsored by Amadeus
16.15
—
16.30
Creativity Workshop — Feedback & results summary
16.30
—
17.15
Keynote Speaker — Grainne Kelly ‘There is no such word as canny’ — CEO & Founder of Bubblebum
17.15
—
19.45
At your leisure
19.45
—
20.30
Pre-dinner drinks reception, sponsored by Bedsonline
20.30 —
22.30
Dinner — Sponsored by Hertz
*All morning sessions on Friday are closed and for Travel Centres members only. Afternoon sessions open to all. 3
Saturday, 9th November 10.00
—
10.45
Registration & Refreshment — Sponsored by the Travel Corporation
10.45
—
12.50
Morning speed-dating workshops
12.50
—
13.00
Headline sponsor presentation — Jennifer Callister, Royal Caribbean
13.00
—
14.00
Lunch
14.00
—
14.10
MSC Cruises Presentation
14.10
—
16.30
Afternoon speed-dating workshops
16.30
—
17.30
Martinis & manicures, sponsored by Princess Cruises
Afternoon refreshments sponsored by the Travel Corporation 17.30
—
19.45
At your leisure
19.45
—
20.30
Pre-dinner drinks reception — Sponsored by Travelport
20.30 —
22.30
Gala Dinner — Entertainment sponsored by Bookabed
22.30 —
23.00
Awards 2019
23.00 —
01.00
Dancing to Brass & Co.
01.00
03.00
DJ
—
Table Plans for Gala Dinner Blank table plans for the Gala Dinner will be displayed on notice boards in the main function room throughout the day on Saturday. Please fill in your name on one of these table plans no later than 15.45 as the completed or partially completed table plans will be collected at 16.00. If your agency has four or more staff attending, a table plan with your name details will already have been pre-populated.
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AWARDS As in previous years, there are 11 separate awards up for grabs across six different categories, together with one single award for ‘Supplier of the Year’. All the agent categories reflect evaluations based on a combination of overall sales performance in 2019, year-on-year improvement, marketing initiatives and product knowledge/engagement in training amongst others. This year for the first time, we’ve also decided to recognise the efforts of hard-working supplier sales executives and so have introduced an additional category. The ‘Supplier of the Year’ award is based on a detailed online evaluation of all current preferred suppliers based on eight different criteria such as product quality, price competitiveness, problem resolution etc. Last year we commissioned Irish designer Brendan O’Donnell to create a bespoke trophy using natural materials such as oak and brass which we are confident will make a bold statement when displayed in the offices of this years’ award winners. On graduating in Industrial Design from NCAD in 2001, Brendan spent 10 years 5
working in furniture design & project management, building a wide range of skills & knowledge before following his ambition to design & make the finest pieces of both his own designs & that of the architects, artists & designers who commission him. His typical work includes custom lighting, bespoke furniture and sculptural steel work. Working in mixed media including: solid wood, metals, glass, plastics & composites. Based in his studio workshop outside Dungarvan, Co. Waterford, Brendan creates his designs using everything from vintage restored hand tools to the latest in CAD/CAM software operating CNC router and CNC laser machines.
As there will be more suppliers in attendance than there will be available speed-dating slots in which to visit them all, agency staff are encouraged to split up across the room so that, collectively, they get to meet more suppliers/ exhibitors within the allocated time. Each agent will be provided with a passport when registering in the morning and each passport will contain details of all exhibitors participating in the room, listed in alphabetical order. Each agent will have to have their passport manually time-stamped at each desk by the supplier/exhibitor in question. The order of exhibitors/suppliers within the room will, however, be completely random. All passports must be personalized by writing in your full name and agency in the spaces provided on the front. They must also be time-stamped, every time you visit an exhibitor desk. Passports must be surrendered at the end of the afternoon by placing them in the boxes provided as these will be used to choose some additional, random winners of some great prizes that will be raffled off during the gala dinner. Agent Na
me:
Agenc y:
Supplier ‘Speed Dating’ Workshop The cornerstone of the conference each year is the speed-dating workshop that takes place on the Saturday. The challenge each year is trying to ensure that all conference delegates fully engage with their supplier partners throughout the day so that, ideally, all agents visit all suppliers in equal measure. What tends to happen is that agents only end up visiting those suppliers that they already do business with, thus defeating the whole point of learning about new preferred suppliers that have been added to the portfolio.
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GENERAL INFORMATION
Check in Please note that check in at the hotel is not before 12.00 noon so if you are arriving on Saturday, please proceed directly to registration and either leave your luggage in the car (if using own transport) or leave in the care of the porter (if arriving via public transport). All luggage will be kept in a secure location until such time as you are in a position to check-in later — i.e. after 5.30 p.m. when the supplier workshop finishes.
Punctuality As we are working to extremely tight schedules, it is important that every agent delegate and exhibitor observe the times allocated for each event throughout the conference weekend such as closed sessions, workshop segments, presentations and meals etc. This will ensure the smooth running of the event and a better overall conference experience for all concerned. Please note that we are experimenting with non-defined refreshment breaks throughout the Saturday workshops this year — i.e. tea/coffee/biscuits will be available at designated stations in the workshop area throughout the day so as to maximise productivity amongst participants and avoid unnecessary logjams.
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Closed Forum
Suggestions
Please note that the morning sessions on the Friday are closed to nonmembers, trade press and suppliers but all are welcome to attend all presentations in the afternoon which starts immediately after lunch.
A lot of thought and planning goes into arranging each year’s conference but we’re always receptive to new suggestions as to how we can improve on the delegate experience and make the content of these weekends more relevant to your business. Ideas on a postcard please. (Better still, just email them!)
Remembering your table number Anytime you break for refreshments or lunch over the course of both days, we recommend that you leave your conference bag containing all your paperwork, notes and giveaways on the seat that you have been occupying and just remember the number of your table so that when the workshop resumes after each break, you can collect your belongings and move to your next table. Remembering your table number immediately before each break will help us streamline our proceedings throughout both days.
Interim Presentations Because of the fast pace of the individual speed-dating sessions on Saturday, we have scheduled two interim presentations (one immediately before lunch at 12.50 and one immediately after lunch at 14.00) to help punctuate the day and allow exhibitors (particularly those working on their own) to take additional rest breaks. Each presentation will be made from the stage area and be a maximum of 10 minutes in duration.
Testimonials Some of your colleagues will be absent from this year’s event and for a variety of reasons. If you enjoy yourself this weekend, then we’d like to hear from you so we can share your comments/observations with those who perhaps take a little bit more convincing that such events are both relevant and worthwhile.
Conference Hashtag# Help us promote this year’s conference through social media by tweeting your comments and observations to the Twitterverse at large by using the following designated hashtag #travelcconf. Our new digital media expert Lisa Gibbons, will be monitoring all communications and the most engaging tweets, travel quotes, selfies and best-dressed ladies (and men!) will receive some nice spot prizes — courtesy of Travel Centres.
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ADVISORY BOARD The advisory board comprises nine member agents who, between them, represent the interests of the general membership and who, in conjunction with the management team, define the policies and supplier preferences of the group. The board positions are voluntary so board members donate freely of their time and expertise throughout the year in order to help drive the collective agenda of members. The board meets periodically throughout the year. The advisory board currently consists of the following members: Carolyn Davis, Liberty Travel, Letterkenny In 2002 and with over thirty years experience working in the travel and hospitality sectors in the UK, Cyprus and Ireland, Carolyn established Liberty Travel in Letterkenny. The agency has since grown in size and reputation to become Donegal’s leading travel agency. Her team of six staff has vast experience and love to travel themselves, bringing a wealth of knowledge to the client. Carolyn has embraced digital marketing and social media and identifies this as an important strategy for the way forward. Carolyn is the ‘Travel Section Expert’ for Highland Radio, Irelands leading independent radio station. Maria Dilworth, Blackpool Travel, Cork Maria has been involved in the travel industry since 1976 and opened the doors of Blackpool Travel in 2000. After many years of living and breathing travel, Maria took a sabbatical from the industry 9
and earned her BCL Law Degree from UCC and practised as a solicitor specialising in Employment Law. Maria made a return to the travel industry in recent years and favours America and Spain as her holiday destinations! Linda McNamara, Ace Travel, Newcastle West Linda opened Ace Travel 20 years ago to service clients in the West Limerick area and has grown over the years to become one of the top agents in the Munster area. Ace Travel has won several awards over the years and has a fantastic staff which offers professional and friendly service thus retaining clients year in and year out. Linda enjoys travelling and has undertaken some excellent trips all over the world. She also enjoys a good game of hurling whether at local level or the All Ireland finals. Declan O’Connell, Lee Travel, Cork Declan has been in the Travel Industry since 1975. Based in Cork City with offices in Midleton, Youghal and Ballincollig, Lee Travel now employs 26 people. Declan is a former board member of the ITAA and strongly believes in the future of the travel agent. He enjoys travelling very much and has recently clocked up his 60th country with a few more to go.
Michael Bowe, Bowe Travel, Thurles Michael Bowe Jnr. is the 4th Generation of the Bowe family to run Bowe Travel. First established in 1906 by Michael’s great- grandfather — it has continued to thrive down through the intervening decades and is based in Thurles, Co. Tipperary. Michael was reared in the travel industry and like the rest of us, loves to travel! Michael Geraghty, Cavan Travel, Cavan Cavan Travel was established in February 1988 by Michael and his wife Margaret, so is celebrating 30 years in travel in 2018. His second office — Virginia Travel, was subsequently opened in November 2011 – great timing! Michael now employs seven staff between the two offices. Michael has been involved with Travel Centres since its inception. Italy is Michael’s favourite holiday destination. Tom Britton, Marble City Travel, Kilkenny Tom started in the travel industry in 1995. He is managing director of Marble City Travel, Kilkenny. Since 2010 Marble City Travel has increased its staffing from 3 to 10 with continued growth into 2018 planned. Marble City Travel have been the recipient of several award categories in recent years at the annual Travel Centres conference and Tom describes himself as a ‘cruise anorak’, having completed over 20 cruises in recent years.
Clare Dunne, The Travel Broker, Dublin Clare began her travel career with Aer Lingus in 1979 and since then has experienced many aspects of the travel business. She established her own independent travel company The Travel Broker in 1994, providing corporate, leisure and incentive travel services to a wide range of customers, in Ireland and abroad, offline and online. She has also developed and taught several ‘What Do Travel Agents Do’ introductory courses for job seekers.Clare has served as President of Network Ireland both in Dublin and Nationally. She served as President of ITAA from 2012-2014. Clare is currently a member of the board of ITAA, on the committee of Clontarf Business Association and on the Advisory Board of Travel Centres. She is also an active member of Dublin Chamber of Commerce and North Dublin Business Network. Jeff Collins, Best4travel group Jeff began his travel career in the early 90’s, when he worked for Delta airlines for 10 years —based mainly at Dublin airport. From there, he progressed to senior positions within both American holidays and needahotel.com . In 2005, Jeff, together with his father Jim, established www.globehotels.com as a wholesale tradeonly worldwide accommodation website which is now Travel Centres longest preferred Bedbank supplier since 2006. In 2010, Jeff established the Best4travel group which now boasts 10 retail shops, a home working division and an online team . The company currently employs close to 60 staff and is ample proof that people still need travel professionals to arrange their travel requirements . 10
TRAVEL A G E N T
REBOOTING THE HIGH STREET TRAVEL EXPERIENCE ‘If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got’… …is one of the most often quoted utterances from that titan of industry, Henry Ford. It’s really another way of saying that we need to take note of what is working and what is not and be prepared to change our approach or methodology in order to get the desired result that we want. The purchasing habits of consumers have changed a lot in recent years, but it would be fair to say that the working habits of travel agents, by and large, have not.
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This year’s conference theme is all about challenging what we do and why we do it to see if we, individually, and also collectively as an industry, can reinvent ourselves and reposition the value proposition that we represent to a growing cohort of consumers who have already begun to think of us as irrelevant!
SPEAKERS Charlie Tuxworth Innovate XL Charlie Tuxworth is an experienced Business Leader with expertise in Innovation, Enterprise Software, & Business Development. Charlie headed the Software Solutions team in a large Belfast IT company, leading a team of 150 in the delivery of complex business solutions into Financial Services, Public & Private sector customers. The company was acquired by a UK PLC and in 2013 Charlie took responsibility for Group Innovation. This coincided with Charlie becoming involved with start-ups and early stage companies – supporting them in Queens University’s Cyber Security Innovation Lab; acting as an ‘Entrepreneur in Residence’ for Catalyst Inc; and as a board member of SpecialisterneNI (supporting people on the Autistic Spectrum to gain employment in IT). Inspired by the start-up culture, and tiring of the constraints
of large enterprise, Charlie co-founded InnovateXL, enabling him to support a wider range of businesses looking to challenge the way they operate, and wanting to implement and enhance their own innovation programmes.
Mr Dermott Jewell Mr Jewell (B.Sc. (Mgmt.) Law (TCD)) is Policy & Council Advisor to the Consumers’ Association of Ireland. A recognised advocate, trainer and advisor in consumer rights and protection he has written and commented extensively across national and local newspaper, radio and television. He has lectured in financial, project and change management to consumer Organisation advocates from across the EU through the EC Trace project and in consumer law through the EC Consumer Law Ready project in Ireland.
His representations include: Chairperson/ Director of the European Consumer Centre (ECC) Ireland; Chairperson of the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI) Certification Oversight Committee. Director of the Investor Compensation Company Limited (ICCL) at the Central Bank of Ireland. Member – Legal Services Regulatory Authority; Member of the Financial Services & Pensions Ombudsman Council and Member of the European Banking Authority (EBA) – Banking Stakeholder Group and Member of the Food Safety Authority of Ireland Consultative Council. He was elected President of ANEC – The European Consumer Voice in Standardisation in June 2019. Mr Jewell is a member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitration (Irish Branch) CIArb with accreditations in Employment Investigation and Mediation. He is a Member of the Irish Institute of Mediation and the Institute of Directors. He was recently awarded the IPA-UCD Professional Certificate in Governance. 12
Juan Bueso Juan Bueso is a Spanish lawyer, registered with the Law Society of Ireland. He is also a business analyst and a data protection practitioner. Juan has worked in the field of consumer protection for over 15 years, having served as the Legal Adviser to the European Consumer Centre in Ireland since 2007, where he leads a small but committed team of advisers providing information and support to the public in relation to cross-border consumer transactions. He specialises in subjects such as e-commerce, alternative dispute resolution and travel law. Having participated in a number of expert and advisory groups at national and EU level (including on the review of package travel legislation), he has also worked, on a secondment basis, with the European Commission, where he contributed to the development and implementation of a case management system to facilitate the handling of consumer complaints within the EU/EEA.’ 13
Grainne Kelly CEO & Founder of BubbleBum Grainne Kelly is the Inventor, Founder and CEO of BubbleBum UK Ltd, the manufacturer of the world’s first inflatable car booster seat which has revolutionised the child travel industry. A multi-award winning entrepreneur, Grainne founded BubbleBum in December 2009 and the company now exports to 27 countries globally and the BubbleBum is stocked by major retailers such as Amazon, Halfords, Target, Migros and Boots. The product won the US Insurance Institute for Highway Safety Best Bet Booster 2011, which resulted in major media exposure including the front page of USA Today and The Wall Street Journal. It has continued to win many awards over the years including the latest Family Choice Award, Parent Choice Award, Made for Mums Award and National Parenting Product Award. In 2019, it won the most innovative product award at the CBME in Shanghai.
Since setting up the business, her husband has become the COO and her two sons have been involved with the design of all BubbleBum products, as well as being part of promotional literature and advertising. Grainne appeared on Dragons Den in 2014 and famously turned down an offer from the dragons. Grainne left school to study art and maths but veered into the construction industry, and then into commercial radio, followed by a long time in the travel industry. She has won several awards including Belfast Telegraph Business Woman of the Year, Ulster Bank All Ireland Business Achievers Award, Wonga Future 50 Disruptors Award, Runner Up Amazon Growing Business Awards as well as a finalist in the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year, and the European Business Awards not to mention several other awards including her most recent win in 2018 for British American Business – Woman in Business Award in the Transatlantic Growth Awards. In 2019 Grainne was invited to join the UK Prime Minister’s Counsel for Entrepreneurs.
The theme for this year’s Gala Dinner on Saturday night is ‘Hollywood Glamour’ so we’re expecting everyone to make a bit of an effort in their sartorial makeovers (and that includes the men too, by the way!) Being the generous folks that we are at Travel Centres, there will be prizes for the best/original ‘look’ for both male and female! We have some great entertainment lined up for your viewing pleasure, along with a nice surprise which the ladies are going to love, but our lips are sealed so you’ll just have to wait and see on the night! 14
E N T E R TA I N M E N T
IRELAND’S PREMIER PARTY BAND Brass & Co has developed a very special live sound which has made it one of the most highly soughtafter and respected bands for many of Ireland’s most prestigious functions and events. The band doesn’t use backing tracks – just real live music, played by some of the best musicians in the country.
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In fact most of the band play several instruments, giving the band a huge amount of flexibility and programme variety. 7 members of the band are experienced singers and match each voice to the style of each song performed – whether it’s Frank Sinatra or Bruno Mars!
Saturday Night Entertainment Keith O’Connell is a Dublin based musician and songwriter who has been playing piano and keyboards since the age of 7. Keith loves performing both as a solo artist and as part of various bands and has played some of Ireland’s biggest theatres over the course of the past 20 years. Cary Posavitz has been performing professionally since the age of 17 in a variety of shows and venues all over the world. He spent four years performing in Riverdance. In the US, Cary starred in ‘Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat, had lead roles in Cruisin’ ’57 for Dick Clark Productions, The Magnificent Gospel Showcase for Sky Television and has been a featured entertainer for Regency, Radisson and Celebrity Cruise Lines. Cary has also performed with Celtic Women for their PBS Television Special. 16
Thanks again for a great event. Thoroughly enjoyed it. You guys sure know how to party! That band was brilliant.
Saturday’s event was wonderful, thank you to all the team for another successful conference
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There was a fantastic atmosphere in the room for the speed dating sessions and needless to say, the evening event went down a storm! It was by far the best conference yet and the engagement from members was outstanding
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IT PAyS To
Love Royal From cash rewards to money-can’t-buy experiences, we’ll reward you for every booking you make.
Visit MyClubRoyal
ROYAL CARIbbEAN TEAM IRELAND Jennifer Callister Head of Ireland Mob: +353 86 8227010 | E mail: jcallister@rccl.com
Michelle Ryan Regional Sales Manager Ireland Mob: +353 86 1895339 | michelleryan@rccl.com
Holly Rice (nĂŠe Wilkinson) Account Executive Ireland Trade Support: +44 (0)1932 834379 | hrice@rccl.com
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