A “phenomenal year”: Trevello outlines plan for world domination at supplier event

Trevello Travel Group is on a quest for world domination. At least that’s what the host agency’s tell-it-like-it-is CEO, Zeina Gedeon, will tell you.

The highlights of Trevello’s “phenomenal year,” along with updates on a slew of new projects that are in the pipeline – programs that will “change the landscape of the host agency model,” in Gedeon’s words – took centre stage Thursday night (Nov. 28) at the company’s annual partner appreciation cocktail.

The chatty mix and mingle, held at lofty StartWell studios near Queen and Niagara streets in the western corners of downtown Toronto, welcomed a who’s who guest list of roughly 70 suppliers from all corners of the biz.

In between clinking wine glasses and offers to try fresh pitas with hummus and sweet baklava, prepared by Darna, a Toronto-based Middle Eastern restaurant, attendees took a seat in the venue’s art gallery-like studio to hear the latest from Trevello’s leadership team.

Trevello’s big year

It’s been a big year for the host agency formally known as Travel Professionals International (TPI). The company, for one, is celebrating its 30th anniversary, a milestone that was marked by a national conference held aboard the Ruby Princess in Alaska in May.

Trevello also announced its plan to expand into the United States under parent company Trevello World Holdings. This led to a slight in shake-up in titles: Gedeon remains chief executive officer of Trevello’s Canadian operating company, but is also now chief operating officer of Trevello World Holdings.

U.S.-based Elizabeth Crabill was originally tapped to lead the U.S. expansion. However, Crabill’s time at Trevello was brief, and her replacement is currently TBA.

Company Founder Morris Chia, meanwhile, sits at the top of the organization as CEO of Trevello World Holdings.

As if that wasn’t enough, Trevello then announced it was going public through a qualifying transaction with M3 Capital Capital Corp. on the TSX Venture Exchange. 

Following the merger, Trevello will hold a majority of ownership of the public entity, which will be named Trevello World Holdings Inc.

The stock will enter the market by April “at the latest,” Gedeon told attendees.   

Furthermore, Trevello is in discussions to acquire a new company – the details of which will be shared in January, Gedeon said.

Expansion & “domination” 

The reason for all these big decisions has to do with two things: expansion and, one of Gedeon's favourite words, “domination." 

“The expansion will leverage our contracts and all our different shared services so we have one place, whether it's inside sales or customer service. It will help us do a much better job at talking to our partners,” Gedeon told the room.

Trevello World Holdings will a take “one-voice approach” to marketing, managed by one director in Canada, and one in the U.S., she said. The same approach applies to the company’s vision for technology.

“Everything we do now is going to be done for all entities, regardless of where they are,” Gedeon said. 

Cruise makes a big splash 

Gedeon went on to share sales updates, broken down by product, for Trevello’s Canadian network.

Worth noting are the host agency’s cruise sales, which have jumped from nine to 17 per cent over the past six years. Tour sales, meanwhile, have dipped as more agents, post-pandemic, have taken to booking their air, hotels, DMCs direct, bypassing packages offered by tour operators, Gedeon said.

To that end, tour still makes up 60 per cent of Trevello’s total sales in Canada, an amount that currently exceeds $325 million dollars (which is nine per cent higher than last year).

“Every place shows significant growth,” Gedeon said.

But it hasn’t been linear. Like some suppliers, 2024 has been marked by “a lot of ups and downs,” Gedeon shared.

“One month, we’ll do amazing, and then another, we’ll barely get by,” she said. “It’s been a lot of peaks and valleys for us, and I know some suppliers have seen the same.”

Meanwhile, Trevello’s network in Canada now sits at roughly 1,000 agents (which is 20 per cent higher than 2023), who serve a database of more than 300,000 clients.

Where Trevello advisors are excelling is in their growing value. Gedeon said the network now has 49 agents who have reached Chairman Circle status. It’s Trevello’s highest number yet.

This is reserved for top-producing advisors who achieve more than $2.5 million in sales, and who earn an average commission of $290,000.

New compensation model

Another talking point was Trevello’s plan to “disrupt” the industry with a new compensation model.

“We truly believe the host model is broken,” Gedeon said. “Advisors do not necessarily get paid for all the work they do. They have no pension plan – if you want to call it that – and the technology is [poor].”

Deciding it was time for a change, Trevello launched a new compensation model last week that unlocks “unprecedented earning potential.”  

“It has always been about the advisor, but now it's about compensation for the advisor,” Gedeon said.

The model is part of a program called Momentum, which taps into the collective strength of Trevello, and the support its members, employees and supplier partners have for each other.

The basis of the model is that every Trevello advisor, as of January 1, 2025, will start at 85 per cent commission. Then, once an agent earns $15,000 in commission, they go to 100 per cent.

The program was introduced to Trevello’s network last week, "and already over 50 per cent signed up,” Gedeon said.

Another new offer is the Ambassador Program 2.0, which is for advisors who bring in, or give, their business to another person. Once established, anything coming in from that person will “be “yours for life,’ willable to future generations, Gedeon said.

“This way it stays in the family, if they want to keep it,” Gedeon said.

Launch Pad & themed events

Susan Lawson, Trevello’s director of engagement, reviewed the network’s latest industry initiatives, such as Launch Pad, a program for new-to-industry advisors – “our fastest-growing segment,” she said.

“Yes, we have a lot of experienced advisors that are moving over. But interestingly enough, so many people from outside of the industry want to join.”

Launch Pad equips newcomers with the basics on how to get started in travel, Lawson said.

“We need to wrap our arms around them, and help them, because in the beginning it can be a bit overwhelming,” she said.

The program features exclusive training modules and two phone meetings each week with Trevello’s team.

“A lot of new-to-industry [people] are still working full-time, with plans of one day retiring or shifting their careers into this business full time,” Lawson said, noting how Launch Pad offers flexible training times throughout the day.

Newcomers are from “all walks of life,” Lawson explained, “and are true professionals,” ranging from health care industries to general entrepreneurs.

Recognizing that the travel industry is ageing, Trevello is also trying to attract younger people.

“It's amazing to see how many new-to-industry [people] are younger…and they're very ambitious,” Lawson said. “We've had a few that have made it to the Chairman Circle.”

Trevello is also enhancing the way members engage with suppliers at events. Last year, Trevello hosted close to 50 events, which involved more than 220 suppliers and 1,100 participating advisors.

In 2025, the company will switch things up with themed events (for example, events that focus only on cruise), said Lawson.

To streamline events, Trevello has activated an email address, partnerevents@trevello.com, which serves as a new point of contact for suppliers who want to send invites. 

For the love of cruise (and luxury)

Caroline Hay, Trevello’s general manager of cruise, talked about leveraging partnerships to utilize Trevello’s growing buying power.

Hay said Trevello will “aggressively” be going after a North American contract, with all of its North American partners, that will be sold under a unified contract, but roll with separate brands.

This will maintain a specific structure “so we know which sales will be coming out of each of the branches” under Trevello World Holdings, which will dictate how marketing dollars, overrides and splits are shared, Hay said.

She touched briefly on Trevello’s strategic partner program, which “has done incredibly well for us.”

The program, which provides visibility for preferred partners, bonus earning potential for agents, and collective marketing opportunities, has led to a 58 per cent boost in bookings among suppliers who are preferred.

Trevello is also trying simplify the clunky world of marketing with automated processes that streamline assets and training into one easy-to-use form.

Hay, of course, dove into her favourite topic, cruise, one of Trevello’s fastest-growing segments, highlighting Cruise Central, a new platform that aims to refine the booking process and boost cruise sales as a one-stop shop.

Cruise Central integrates more than 35 cruise lines into one interface, with features that cater to B2B and B2C needs. It includes customizable branding for agents and management tools for team leaders.

The platform (which operates alongside Air Central, a sister program) is also able to handle bookings for consortia, headquarters and advisor groups.

“It’s really helping, especially new-to-industry advisors,” Hay said.

Next year, Trevello will add more resources into its North American cruise division, will develop a headquarters for groups, and continue to offer certification programs that ensure cruise remain top of mind within the network, Hay said.

Hay added that there are other segments of the industry “that we can mimic” what Trevello has done with cruise.

“The next sensible step is luxury, with our partnership with Virtuoso and our enhanced partnerships,” she said.

The goal, Hay said, is to ensure that “all of our advisors feel confident and comfortable in introducing luxury to their clients.”

Projections for 2025

Next year is shaping up to be a profitable one.

Gedeon said Trevello’s sales for 2025 (which combine both Canada and the U.S. numbers – Trevello, currently, has some 20 agents in the U.S.) will be up 78 per cent next year, with commission rising by 81 per cent.

Cruise sales, in particular, are expected to balloon by 99 per cent.  Trevello also plans to take on 140 new advisors.

“We’re still innovating,” Hay said. “We're the original innovators in the host agency market and we continue to be pushed by Morris, Zeina and the entire executive team to keep striving for levels that we never thought we could reach.”

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