TTAND conference convenes in Cuba

As a glowing orange sun set beneath the horizon of the Gulf of Mexico, more than 60 Canadian travel agents and 19 suppliers raised a glass to Meliá hotels and WestJet’s 20th birthday last night (April 24) at an exclusive dinner on the beach of the Meliá Paradisus resort in Varadereo, Cuba.

The outdoor soiree, which included a site inspection and smoking barbeque buffet set to a serene backdrop of tropical palm trees, marked the half-way point for The Travel Agent Next Door’s (TTAND) annual conference, taking place in Varadero from April 20-27.

“For me, when you think that we’re only 24 months old, I’m pretty stoked,” Flemming Friisdahl, founder of TTAND, told PAX, which is currently on location in Varadereo covering the conference, hosted by Air Canada Vacations and held at the beachfront Iberostar Laguna Azul resort.

TTAND opened in March 2014 to assist home-based travel agents and medium-to-small-sized agencies by providing them with marketing tools and access to programs designed to improve business.

In two years the company has built an office staff of 17 people and has attracted 200 primary agents and 80 associate agents to join their rapidly-growing network.

The goal of TTAND’s conference, now in its second year, is to unite travel professionals for a week of networking, keynote speakers, professional development and celebration centered around this year’s theme, “2020 Vision,” which stresses the importance of having a clear vision for the next five years in order to succeed.

“When we get everyone into the same room, they get to network and get ideas and suggestions you don’t always get when you’re in a work environment,” said Friisdahl, an industry veteran with more than 30 years of experience in Canadian travel.

The off-site dinner at the high-end Meliá Paradisus gave TTAND delegates an opportunity to learn more about Meliá’s brand, which includes 450 hotels worldwide, as well as its new products, including The Level, a program that offers guests the option of receiving a butler and private bar and dinning area to enhance their vacation.

Brenda Bradley, sales executive, Cuban division, Meliá Hotels International Cuba, gave a presentation and later praised the TTAND conference for allowing her to “get everybody together in one spot, so they can all see the same thing and know what I’m talking about when I speak with them one-on-one.”

“When you talk to the agents, they’re over the moon happy with their decision to go with [TTAND],” Bradley told PAX.

The night was also spent cheering for WestJet, which recently celebrated its 20th anniversary.

“It’s great to be with a Canadian company that has a solid foundation and that’s profitable,” said Matthew Djorsev, an eight-year-strong WestJet employee who covers agency sales in Toronto, Eastern Ontario and Manitoba.

Djorsev said there was “a lot of value” to having a large group of home-based agents together for dinner on one beach.

“Being a sales manager, we don’t often get to meet face-to-face with home-based agents, so having them here is great for networking,” Djorsev told PAX. “I get to listen to them if they have any challenges or feedback about the product.”

The evening concluded with a rousing round of “heads or tails,” a process of elimination game whereby participants randomly place their hands on their heads or hips, for a chance to win a three-night stay at the Meliá Paradisus Varadero plus airfare from anywhere in Canada courtesy of Meliá and WestJet.

The stakes were high as delegates battled it out, entertainingly eliminating themselves one-by-one, but in the end it was Patricia Evans from Munster, ON, who took home the loot.

Stay tuned as PAX brings you more on location coverage from TTAND’s 2020 Vision Conference in Varadero, Cuba.

PHOTO: Rhonda Stanley, vice president, talent development, TTAND; Brenda Bradley, sales executive, Cuban division, Melia Hotels International Cuba; Shean Carmichael, marketing coordinator, TTAND; Matthew Djorsev, sales, agency sales, Toronto, Eastern Ontario, Manitoba, WestJet; Flemming Friisdahl, founder, TTAND; Penny Martin, vice president, travel agent experience, TTAND.