How Julie Sareault & Renée Boisvert intend to strengthen Transat’s ties with agencies

Two leaders at Transat have advanced ahead.

The company's previous Vice President of Products, Renée Boisvert was recently promoted to Vice-President, Products & Tour Operator Sales, while Julie Sareault saw her responsibilities as sales director extend across Canada.

As part of their expanded roles, Ms. Boisvert and Ms. Sareault both share a desire to strengthen Transat's partnership with travel agencies. But how will they do it?  

PAX connected with both executives to get all the answers.

PAX: Transat has positioned your promotions as a strengthening of leadership to better support partners and customers. How, exactly, will this happen?

Renée Boisvert: Julie and I are enthusiastic about the idea of pooling our resources and expertise to increase productivity while maintaining the level of service that has earned us a solid reputation over the years.

The unification of processes, the harmonization of policies and the simplification of operational tools directly contribute to improving productivity. This reduces operational inefficiencies, eliminates redundancies and allows teams to focus on high-value activities.

PAX: What role do travel agents play in Transat’s growth strategy?

Renée Boisvert: Travel agencies are at the heart of our strategy, playing a key role in the promotion and distribution of our services. Their expertise, their ability to establish relationships of trust with their customers and their mastery of reservation tools make them indispensable partners.

Agencies not only help generate significant sales, but also strengthen our brand image and our commitment to an exceptional customer experience. For 37 years, we have worked closely with these professionals to build strong, mutually beneficial relationships, which continue to be a pillar of our success.

PAX: How do you intend to strengthen Transat’s partnership with travel agencies?

Julie Sareault: Our strong relationship with travel agencies is based on the constant support we offer them. Our inside sales team is available daily to answer questions, provide immediate support and maximize the use of our tools and offerings.

At the same time, our account managers work hand in hand with each partner, offering personalized support and solutions adapted to their needs. In 2025, our priority is to continue to innovate and strengthen these partnerships, in order to achieve our common goals, while providing a remarkable customer experience.

PAX: Can you provide concrete examples of Transat initiatives that are aimed at supporting travel agencies?

Renée Boisvert: At Transat, numerous initiatives aim to facilitate the work of our travel agency partners, enrich their knowledge and develop their business opportunities.

In 2025, we will continue to develop self-service tools to meet the needs of our partners. A major initiative will be the launch of a tool dedicated to groups, planned for mid-January, in order to simplify and optimize reservations in this strategic segment.

When it comes to continuing education, our weekly webinars remain a key initiative. We will continue to offer training on new products, digital tools and more. The goal is to ensure that each agent has access to the knowledge they need to maximize their performance and better meet their customers' expectations. We also offer tools to better sell Transat.

PAX: What can you say about the tools?

Renée Boisvert: For travel advisors, Transat Agent Direct remains the reference tool. In order to best support them in promoting our offers, we continually work to enrich and optimize our marketing tools, thus enabling them to better meet customer expectations and maximize their effectiveness.

We are particularly proud of our hotel recommendation tool which allows travel advisors to search using filters based on their clients' criteria. Once the hotels are selected, the travel advisor can then write a personalized message and share the content by email. This tool has been very well received by our users and has greatly improved the efficiency of their travel planning process.

Travel advisors can also find our current special offers and shareable content on TAD, which will highlight our offers and provide them with ready-to-use information for their communications. The crucial element, in this case, is that the content they distribute uses dynamic pricing. By offering the best pricing options in real time, agents can stay ahead of the competition and attract more clients.

Additionally, the landing pages of tools that suggest hotels and current deals are not transactional. Sales must be made by the travel advisor. They are designed to collect leads and direct potential clients to the agency. The actual booking process takes place in the agency.

PAX: In your opinion, what challenges are impacting the travel industry right now?

Julie Sareault: Since the resumption of tourist activities, it is clear that the entire supplier-agencies chain is facing major challenges. This situation requires collective mobilization, an increased capacity for innovation and a concern for efficiency at all stages.

Among the main gaps to be filled is the fluidity of processes. As request volumes increase, it is essential to simplify the processes of booking, managing groups and processing changes or cancellations. Digital tools must evolve to ensure rapid and efficient interactions between suppliers and agencies.

Another challenge is ensuring that communication is proactive. Particularly in a context of high demand, a constant and transparent flow of information between suppliers and agents is essential to manage customer expectations and avoid misunderstandings.

Adapting to demand is also an important issue. All stakeholders must be able to quickly adjust availability, prices and offers to meet rapidly changing traveller preferences.

Finally, travel agents need ongoing support and training to master new tools, adapt to innovations and respond effectively to customer expectations. At Transat, we firmly believe that these challenges can be transformed into opportunities!

PAX: What are you specifically focusing on?

Julie Sareault: We’re focusing on developing effective digital tools to increase efficiency. We also focus on regular agent training through webinars, FAMs and online modules. Finally, we try to maintain fluid communication with our partners to anticipate and quickly resolve problems.

PAX: What are Canadian travellers looking for right now?

Renée Boisvert: Consumers today are very attentive to the notion of value. In the context of high inflation and economic difficulties, they evaluate each expense carefully. However, travel continues to occupy a place of choice in their budget, because it remains an essential source of satisfaction.

While demand for travel in the South remains strong, we are seeing growing interest in Europe this winter. And for the summer season, our packages and our accompanied tours recorded good results. This proves that travellers are looking for rich, well-curated experiences, where perceived value is maximized.

This interest in Europe also reflects a trend toward trips that offer a balanced combination of competitive prices, authenticity and cultural immersion.

At Transat, we are committed to responding to this trend by offering diversified and accessible offers, which meet consumers' expectations while taking into account their budgetary constraints. In this difficult economic climate, it is more important than ever to offer excellent value for money.

PAX: Transat is now overseeing commercial activities on a national scale. Julie, does this approach run the risk of missing the particularities of each regional market?

Julie Sareault: At Transat, we understand the importance of each market, whether Atlantic, Ontario or Quebec, and we adapt our initiatives according to the particularities and specific needs of each. Rather than adopting a one-size-fits-all approach, we make sure to consider the unique characteristics and opportunities offered by these different territories.

So, we try to support agents at the local level. Through our regional account managers and inside sales teams, we provide a proactive presence and personalized support to all agents, regardless of their geographic location.

We also ensure that we provide specific tools, training and communication materials, which reflect local realities, in order to help agents maximize their sales.

In addition, we develop targeted approaches based on demographics, traveller preferences and the dynamics of each market.

PAX: Renée, what do your new responsibilities, as vice-president of products and tour operator sales, involve?

Renée Boisvert: My new responsibilities include working closely with Julie and her team to maintain excellent service to our partners and ensure that our offering remains aligned with market needs.

I am also responsible for coordinating with the various internal departments in order to properly position our B2B offer.

Finally, in a process of continuous improvement, I supervise the review and optimization of internal processes to better meet the requirements of a competitive environment.

PAX: Who previously assumed these responsibilities (tour operator sales) at Transat?

Renée Boisvert: There was no VP of tour operator sales before my appointment. The two sales directors reported directly to Joe Adamo, head of sales & marketing at Transat.

The idea of creating a position that brings together the majority of tour operator activities aims to ensure even more focus on these activities, improve efficiency, and maintain our excellent quality of service.

PAX: What are the advantages of having one person responsible for both product and tour operator sales?

Renée Boisvert: From a product point of view, working closely with the sales team and its partners allows us to be at the forefront in understanding the needs in terms of offers and thus adapting our portfolio accordingly.

Our hotel partners are always seeking to better meet the needs of consumers, but also of agency networks. I will therefore be better equipped to guide them.

Negotiating group conditions with hoteliers is part of the product team's tasks. The unification of the sales and product teams under the same leadership will help to better understand the needs of partners and make our offer even more competitive.

Advisor training is definitely a strength at Transat and a competitive advantage. As the person responsible for product development, discussing new developments with the teams, but also with our partners, will be a real pleasure for me. I am sure that these exchanges will be very rich and will bring several opportunities.

PAX: Is your promotion part of Transat’s “Elevation” program?

Renée Boisvert: Yes, one of Elevation’s initiatives is to target organizational efficiency. By bringing together two departments closely linked to tour operating activities under the same leadership, Transat creates an environment conducive to synergies allowing us to be even more efficient and focused on the needs of our customers.

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