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Laid-Off Travel Consultants Bring Loyal Customers Over to New Ventures — For Now

Matthew Parsons

Photo Credit: Growing numbers of laid-off consultants are setting up their own micro agencies. Unsplash / Daria Shevtsova

Skift Take

Experienced travel consultants will inevitably have developed bonds with their clients, but for how long will the mega-agencies stand back and watch as they lose business?

Travel agency groups whose business models cater to independent contractors are reporting a surge in new hires. Global Travel Collection and Travel Counsellors have reported a combined 230 new hires in the past 12 months, in part due to ongoing layoffs at larger travel agencies. These new recruits, who work across the leisure and corporate travel sectors, continue to set up "micro agencies" and other types of coalitions — with loyal customers porting some business over to these new ventures.

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New York-headquartered Global Travel Collection, part of Internova Travel Group, has taken on 70 new travel advisors in the past six months, 25 of which are from the UK. “The majority of the new independent contractors are coming with their portfolio,” said Angie Licea, president of Global Travel Collection. “I equate this to a hairdresser. When a hairdresser leaves their salon and they go to a new salon, they have this following of people who trust them. They don’t want anybody else

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