“I believe a Travel Agent will give me better deals than I get for myself,” says The Travel Corporation (TTC) Global CEO Brett Tollman.
In a recent interview with KARRYON, Brett Tollman shared with us just how important Travel Agents are, how his parents are still today his inspiration and how he is helping the rhino population.
Brett passionately shared his involvement with the Treadright Foundation where they recently helped fund the purchase of a Bat Hawk aircraft that is used for rhino anti-poaching operations in Kruger National Park.
“Preservation of wildlife is key and is one of the pillars surrounding the Treadright foundation”.
The Travel Corporation (TTC) Global CEO Brett Tollman.
Brett is a man who is focused to walk the talk. By removing animal tours across all Travel Corporation brands, the company lost thousands in bookings per year but the awareness, Brett and his team have made, is priceless in order to preserve wildlife around the world.
This passion is clearly seen today in his 10,000 employees where commitment is at the heart of everything he and his team do, along with the clear trade message of – Agents First.
“Always have been and always will be.”
Brett Tollman, The Travel Corporation (TTC) Global CEO
When asked what this means exactly, Brett enthusiastically shared how he personally wrote and signed a letter advising that the TTC are committed to Agents and will never take customers from agents. EVER.
“A good travel adviser is as important as having a financial adviser. Many of us are time poor. I use a travel agent when I book a family holiday so I am a testament and appreciate the value of a Travel Agent.
”I believe a Travel Agent will get me a better deal than I can.”
TTC’s new initiative, My Travel Portal (MTP), was launched just a few weeks ago. This platform aids agents in the effortless delivery of best in class service for clients. The technology can prep the needs of the customer and improve their overall experience. It also allows the customer to upload images and engage with their friends and family.
Brett continued to mention that TTC help introduce other products to the customer and when a booking is made, the majority of times, the agent gets a full commission from TTC as they are able to track which agent this customer came from.
As this platform collects important data about the customer, Brett is happy to share this information back to the Travel Agent.
“We live in a world of transparency. If we start marketing ourselcves to these customers, agents will find out. I want to hand this business down to my children. We are in this for the long haul”.
Brett Tollman, The Travel Corporation (TTC) Global CEO
We could have talked to Brett for hours so here are the top 5 questions you felt you wanted to know.
1. What trends are you seeing overseas at the moment?
At present in the US, over 50% of Travel Agents are home-based and I see this trend only growing further.
2. What’s the next destination for U by Uniworld?
Vietnam and Cambodia.
3. What other expansions are you planning?
Busabout is doing very well and is expanding into the US.
4. What is your most memorable travel destination?
Kenya this last summer. We helped to build a college for young Africans in the Maasai Mara. It was wonderful to have our children get to see them and experience how lucky they are along with getting involved to see how they can make a difference.
5. Who inspires you today?
My parents, as they are the founders of purpose-driven travel.
Read: The travel corporation treads the right way.
Read: Uniworld reveals a new ship cruises itineraries