Polka Dot Travel, which currently has two shops in Shropshire and one in Wales, will cut the ribbon on a pair of new branches this summer.

The Advantage member is due to open its Nantwich shop by the end of August, with a store in Newtown, Wales, following in the first week of September.

Director Helen Johnson told TTG that further expansion would also see two additional Polka Dot stores opening by January 2017 – as well as the launch of the travel agency’s first call centre above its Wrexham premises.

“We’re inundated with calls, which is a brilliant thing really,” Johnson said. “Having the call centre is all about focusing on customer service. We don’t want staff on the shop floor always on the phone, and we want people who see deals online and through Facebook to be put straight through to our team and have their questions answered.”

Johnson also revealed that talks were under way to open franchised Polka Dot stores and that although plans were “in their infancy”, the agency was hoping to launch its first licensed shop by “April next year”.

She added that the business was aiming to add a “minimum” of four franchised stores to its ranks by April – with the project overseen by Johnson’s husband and director of operations, Mark.

“We wanted to be creative in how we expanded,” Johnson said. “It’s about offering the opportunity to fellow people in the industry who may not have the confidence to open a store on their own. By franchising the Polka Dot brand we’ll be able to give them the support they need.

“I’d like to think that it’s something that could take off as we have great faith in the brand and the high street.”

While it focuses on its franchising, Polka Dot, whose Wrexham and Oswestry branches both won places in TTG’s Top 50 Travel Agencies list, has also begun working with a new marketing company to further “strengthen” its brand.

“It’s just another way of enhancing our shop fronts and windows to give us a strong identity,” Johnson added.