“A best-of-both-worlds strategy”: Nexion Canada sets sights on expansion

Face time is the best time.

Nexion Canada kicked off a new series of business development events in Toronto on Thursday (April 17) at the Embassy Suites by Hilton hotel near Pearson airport.

The event, which welcomed 54 travel advisors and 21 suppliers, gave attendees valuable opportunities to make new contacts, learn from each other and gain frontline insights from presentations, a think tank discussion, and a trade show.

The Toronto stop marked the first of six events Nexion has organized. Two are “regionals,” larger events, such as yesterday’s, for advisors in Toronto and Vancouver, where Nexion will be next week.

After that, smaller “mixers” will be held in Calgary, Edmonton, Halifax, and St. John’s.

The gatherings are designed to give Nexion members a chance to mingle with suppliers and learn about programs that facilitate business growth.

But the opportunity to connect with colleagues, from the same geographic area, is what make the events memorable, said Jackie Friedman, president of Nexion Travel Group, which includes Nexion Canada.

“Nexion’s secret sauce is that sense of community,” Friedman told PAX at the event. “[Advisors] love opportunities to get together, share and collaborate.”

The host agency, which now has around 600 members in almost every province (except Quebec), started the year with a new (but familiar) structure after Mike Foster, last September, announced his decision to step down as president of Nexion Travel Group Canada, which began recruiting independent travel advisors in 2013.

It was later revealed that Friedman, who joined Nexion in 2004, would become president of Nexion in both Canada and the United States, and that Esther Roemmele would move into the role of director of Canada operations, continuing her focus on the Canadian market.

Additionally, Alex Foster, Mike's Foster’s son, moved into a sales specialist role.

Since then, the team has set its sights on expansion by investing in “intentional” outreach to grow its membership base, Friedman said.

“We're not just taking on anybody,” she said yesterday. “We want to make sure the folks that are coming on board want to grow a business – whether it's full-time or part time – and that they realize they are both a frontline advisor and business owner.”

What is Nexion Canada’s master plan? PAX sat down with Friedman in Toronto to get all the answers.

PAX: What role do these regional and mixer events play in Nexion’s strategy?

Jackie Friedman (JF): It's part of a strategy to give Canadian advisors the best of both worlds. They want uniquely Canadian content and opportunities where they can get together in market and meet the team that supports them. But they also get to take advantage of broader programs that are available to members in both Canada and the United States.

PAX: Since Mike Foster’s departure from the company, how has Nexion changed?

JF: Esther Roemmele was appointed director of Canadian operations, so she is ultimately responsible for running the day-to-day business. She's been with Nexion Canada before it was even Nexion. She is deeply knowledgeable of the Canadian marketplace, our programs, and processes. This gives her more of an opportunity to shine as the day-to-day contact.

My position hasn't really changed. I was president of Nexion for both the U.S. and Canada. Meaning Mike, at the time, did report to me as president of Nexion Canada. But because Esther's role is now elevated, we've decided that we didn't need to put a new Canadian president in place. In the last six months, we’ve also placed more employees in Canada, who also get the benefit of having support on both sides of the border. So again, a best-of-both-worlds strategy.

PAX: In regards to new advisors joining Nexion, where are they coming from?

JF: I would say 85 per cent are new, or newish, to the industry – and we have wonderful training programs that help bring them up to speed. We do see folks coming from one agency to another. About 15 to 20 per cent are experienced agents.

PAX: The host agency space is very competitive. What does it take to stand out?

JF: First of all, making sure everybody realizes they're running their businesses and that we're here, behind the curtain, helping them look good, giving them tools, resources and programs to be successful. That includes technology and marketing solutions, educational programs, and a community (which is a big one).

A lot of them may be sitting in their homes or small brick and mortar agencies, and they don't have that agent at the next desk that we all had when we started in the industry. So, we want to give them opportunities to collaborate with each other, with the support of our team.

PAX: On another topic, how is Nexion helping its advisors navigate the U.S. tariff situation?

JF: We have monthly town halls where we talk frankly about it. We just did a survey that aims to get a pulse on what advisors are seeing in terms of impact and challenges, whether it's socio-economic, financial, or currency related. There’s a number of headwinds out there right now.

Advisors are free to do whatever they feel is best for them. As for their clients, they should really take the time to be empathetic, listen to them, and to not project their own politics or feelings. Be a good listener, but let clients take the lead. If a client is more comfortable travelling to parts of the world other than the U.S. right now, respect that. Accommodate where you can.

It's a lot of the same advice we gave during the pandemic. There might be some difficult cancellations right now, but how you treat your clients will go a long way in terms of the long-term relationship you have with them.

Once we get the results of our survey back, we can then develop a plan in terms of how to help advisors get through this. It could include some talking points on how to have difficult conversations with clients. It's a moving target, but first and foremost, we have to respect how people feel, what their personal situation might be, and then take it somewhere.

PAX: What shifts in booking patterns have you seen?

JF: We're definitely seeing a reduction in Canadian bookings to the U.S., and I think that's across the board. However, people still want to travel. They're travelling to Mexico, to the Caribbean, and Europe. As far as cruises are concerned, there's some softness out of U.S. home ports, and in Vancouver-Alaska itineraries, both in terms of cancellations and a slowdown in new bookings. But there's not necessarily a slowdown in travel. It's just a shift in where they're travelling to.

PAX: What is Nexion doing to keep its Canadian operations, Canadian?

JF: Canadians are very proud and they like to work with people in Canada. If anything, we’ve put more people in Canada. Esther was always here, and she's now overseeing the day-to-day operations. Whereas before, some of that was being handled out of the U.S.  

We put our accounting manager in Canada (previously, that was handled in the U.S.). Our business development and education teams are in Canada. We have Alex Foster doing recruitment. He’s based here. And then on the membership services team, we’re adding additional personnel in Canada. We’re increasing our staffing in Canada because we realize how important that is. And the team also has a great backup team in the U.S.

Helayne Hauw honoured

As for what’s next at Nexion Canada, the team said members can expect more events and marketing content and extended service hours.

Ajax, ON-based travel advisor Helayne Hauw was also celebrated Thursday for being named an “Ambassador” for Nexion’s entire North America network of 6,000 members.

Hauw, as previously reported, was first honoured for this achievement at the company’s CoNexion conference in New Orleans last September.

It’s an award given to someone who’s dedicated to Nexion’s values and preferred suppliers while showing a non-judgmental, helpful attitude and having an overall positive presence.

“This award has been such a great honour to receive,” Hauw told PAX yesterday. “I’m fairly new to the industry, but I think my strength is in partnerships, building relationships, learning about new products, getting to know BDMs and making connections.”  

Hauw joined Nexion 11 years ago after working for the federal government as a labour inspector for 35 years.

When she sees people joining the travel industry, she always makes a point of reaching out – because she, too, was once in their shoes.

“I always try to help new agents,” Hauw said. “I was new once. I know how easy it is to feel lost. I always try to approach new agents that way – because they’re not alone.”

With files from Nancy Benetton-Sampath. This interview was edited for length and clarity. 

To see more pictures from Nexion Canada's regional event in Toronto, visit and "like" PAX's Facebook here.

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