There will be a special educational during 2018, which has been hinted as being in Asia, and Elegant Resorts will launch a Chairman’s Club for its top-performing agents.
The operator has always had a Chairman’s Club for its high-spending loyal customers and the name will now also be used for the agent programme, designed to entice the trade to book more business with the operator.
Agency sales manager Jo-Anne Fenton said: “The new loyalty club will encompass a lot of the great things we offer agents already, such as incentives, rewards, events and key contacts in the office for them. It’s a model that already works but this formalises it more.”
Membership of the club will be revenue-driven in two tiers, with the top tier needing to generate more than £150,000 of business.
Matt Vlemmiks, Elegant Resorts’ head of product and commercial, said: “We have always offered some great reasons for agents to work with us but perhaps not shouted about it enough. We’ve been a hidden gem, but we want more agents to know about what we can offer.”
Agents will be emailed this week with details of the club and also entertained at dinners in March in London and The Midlands and at a party at the operator’s Chester offices in April.
Vlemmiks said 40% of the company’s business was generated by agents, and in line with many other operators, Elegant has increased commission by 0.5% to help agents absorb credit card fees.
The tour operator is also planning a “huge event” in March for all 130 of its staff, to thank them for their hard work during peaks and celebrate the milestone anniversary.
Lisa Fitzell, will join the business as new managing director in April. She has 30 years experience in the industry, most recently as group managing director for Diethelm Travel’s Asian businesses, based in Bangkok, and has also held senior leadership roles in the UK with STA Travel, Tui and Gold Medal.
