"Business is done on the golf course – it's sometimes much better to do activities together than sit across a table from each other," says Gemma Antrobus, who has chaired the Aito Agents group for more than a decade.
Ahead of the association's annual "famference", which is this year being held in Switzerland's Saas-Fee, Haslemere Travel owner Antrobus argues that some of the strongest commercial relationships can come from shared experiences rather than traditional networking.
The event, a conference come fam trip hybrid, brings agents, operators and the media together for a programme which this year swaps the usual convention halls for mountain carts, husky experiences and alpine hikes in the Swiss resort.
'Agents leave knowing how to sell the destination'
This year's edition continues the famference's strategy and tradition of taking agent members to "underrated destinations". "One of the elements we look for in putting on the famference is somewhere you wouldn’t necessarily have a conference," says Antrobus.
"A lot of conferences go to big tourist hubs and large hotels that can facilitate that kind of thing. But Aito has always been about doing things more independently."
Last year's famference in Gibraltar, she says, challenged long-held assumptions among delegates who may previously have viewed the destination as "just an extension of the UK". "It really opened up how we saw it and how we could sell it," she reveals.
Switzerland, Antrobus adds, will also offer an opportunity to challenge specific perceptions among agents – and improve client conversions. "How many travel agents really know Switzerland for what it can do in the summer?" she asks. "People think of skiing, city breaks or lakes, but actually there’s so much more there.
"Clients are looking for something different – that’s why they’re coming to a travel agency."
'Having the right members is important'
The famference concept itself emerged after Aito decided to step away from running multiple overseas conferences each year. Appetite for these traditional formats had "dwindled", Antrobus says, albeit while stressing members still wanted opportunities to connect face-to-face.
The answer was a more informal model built around relationship-building, with activity groups and dinner seating plans frequently mixed to encourage new relationships between agents, operators and destinations. "I’ve made some great relationships sat on the bus on the way to dinner with somebody, and now I do great business with them," she tells TTG.
Antrobus says expansion remains a priority for the association, but stresses Aito is focused on "meaningful growth" centred around the right mix of agents and specialist operators.
"We all learn so much from each other, so it’s about having the right members that uplift one another," she says. "One thing I hope people experience when they come to Aito events is that sense of family."
'We're a phone call away'
Unlike larger consortia, Antrobus argues Aito's smaller size allows it to respond more directly to individual member needs. "We're not governed by suppliers paying massive marketing funds to send out their messages," she says. "Aito has the ability to step in immediately when an individual business needs help."
That support, she says, ranges from training and commercial advice to operational guidance on everything from Atol issues to succession planning. "If you need assistance with something really niche, I guarantee there is somebody at HQ that can help you," Antrobus explains. "They're a phone call away."
Training programmes are regularly reshaped based on member feedback, covering topics including sustainability, DEI, sales skills and preparing agency owners for an exit or retirement.
Antrobus says member feedback has also shaped smaller changes around inclusivity and accessibility at events. At Aito’s January conference, the association introduced bottles of soft drinks on tables alongside wine during networking dinners – a small adjustment that helped non-drinkers feel more included.
"It sounds really minor, but actually it stops people feeling like the odd one out," she says.
'We expected certain suppliers to be better during Covid'
Beyond the conference programme, Antrobus says the past few years have reinforced the travel industry's natural tenacity. "If you were in the industry pre-Covid, then you're pretty resilient right now," she says.
Antrobus argues newer agents who entered the industry after the pandemic may not yet have had the same experience navigating disruption, but says resilience is something learned over time.
"We're not here to create panic with our clients – we're here to reassure them," says Antrobus. "We learn how to pivot, more than any industry out there. If we can't take clients to one part of the world, we'll send them somewhere else."
At the same time, she argues global disruption has a silver lining, with agents quickly learning which supplier relationships can – or cannot – be relied on. "There were people there that we expected to be better, and they weren't – and they should have been," she says, reflecting on lessons learned during the Covid pandemic.
By contrast, Antrobus says Aito's specialist operator network has consistently delivered the kind of support independent agents need during these periods of disruption.
"Our most trusted partners are our operator partners; they're the ones in the trenches with us," she adds. "We've not got long call wait times, and you're not going through to a call centre."
Ultimately, Antrobus believes the future of specialist travel will continue to be shaped by its agility and close relationships, qualities Aito hopes to reinforce while in Switzerland, both for its famference and its 50th anniversary celebrations later this year, which will also be held in Switzerland.
