Melissa Harley joins Sunwing as BDM for Central, Eastern, Northern ON & Atlantic Canada

Melissa Harley has joined Sunwing Vacations as a business development manager for Central, Eastern, Northern Ontario and Atlantic Canada.

She started the role on Nov. 25 and has joined the team under the management of Dave Wright, director of sales for Ontario & Atlantic Canada.

“We are incredibly excited to welcome Melissa Harley to our sales team,” said Wright in a statement. “Melissa brings a wealth of knowledge of the travel industry including many years as a retail travel agent.  I’m thrilled to have Melissa join us.”

Prior to Sunwing, Harley worked at TripArc, a Navigatr Group-owned company that develops revenue-boosting booking platforms for the travel trade.

“Her extensive knowledge will be a driving force in strengthening our partnerships with the travel advisor community in her territory. With such vast experience, she's well-equipped to provide agents with the support they need in an industry with so many moving parts,” Sunwing said in a press release.

In a statement to PAX, Harley said the interactions that come with being a business development manager are what attracted her to the role.

“Through my years of being a travel agent, I have enjoyed interacting with the business development managers of suppliers and looked forward to their training and events,” she said. “Being the first to hear about all of the newest hotel additions, improvements and offerings was one of my favourite things to do while being a retail agent in a brick and mortar agency and also working from home! With business development experience outside of the travel industry, working with agents for a travel brand that I already loved was a perfect fit.”

What is she most looking forward to?

“I would be lying if I didn't say that travelling (especially to sun destinations) is a huge motivator,” Harley said. “Many southern locations feel like home and I can't wait to show agents around the properties that Sunwing offers in each of these destinations.”

“On a secondary note, I love the challenge of solving problems, especially travel ones. So, being available to agents and providing them with the support they need in an industry with so many moving parts, feels like a great use of my past experience.”

Melissa Harley can be reached at mharley@sunwing.ca.

Don't miss a single travel story: subscribe to PAX today!  Click here to follow PAX on Facebook.