www.giftedtravelnetwork.com
704-585-7732
Email Host Agency
197 Medical Park Rd. Suite 202 Mooresville, NC 28117 A passion project in retirement that turned into a thriving business: Two reasons why and the how:
First, a little background: After twenty years of trading risk arbitrage and equity derivatives in downtown manhattan, the time had come for chapter two, or no chapter at all; the latter option was not appealing. My dad said, "what about being a travel advisor? You love to travel, have a great client list and have been to +60 countries. We use an advisor and it makes all the difference in the world?" I love the idea, but where do you begin?
With Wall Street clientele, the appeal of Virtuoso as the luxury leader in travel helped me narrow my search for a host agency on this very site. The other requirement was a real education; only GTN had both. The year-long program was vital to my success. One could launch without the education on the back of my extensive travel and business experience, but aren't your odds of success drastically higher if you are a true expert? Doesn't that take immersion and mentorship? Would I have done more damage to my budding travel reputation with the finance clients I hoped to convert to travel clients had I not? Would I get more than one chance from those clients?
Fast forward to December 2021, I am in GTN's top producers club (top 30) in my first full year of business! I am invited to the Virtuoso ultraluxe community, attended Belmond's signature Bellini event for 10 USA advisors in Sicily and was on a top producer retreat with GTN. Without education, it would not have unfolded this way and certainly not this quickly.
The second reason is: In real estate, the most valuable metric is location, location, location, but at a host agency, it is culture, culture, culture. The collaboration and support amongst advisors in our community is the silver bullet and goes hand in hand with the educational foundation of GTN. Imagine how much the collective mindshare benefits our clients. I was not expecting instant responses to questions or requests for advice yet opening up the browser to 7 responses in thirty minutes is common. It's another level of vetting and advocacy, but it only happens if the culture is there. We are not competing like local real estate agents who might compete for a listing in town. Our clients are worldwide, an enviable difference, and it means we are not competing so let's help each other win. We share tips, insights and experiences on our internal system in discussion groups that pale in comparison to snarky online forums. We travel together, 14 GTN advisors and I are just back from 12 days in Tanzania, and as a result, we grow together. It's made all the difference in professional growth inspired by culture and education. What more can you ask for?
I feel so lucky to have found GTN as my host agency. I have never met a more supportive group of people that genuinely care about me and my business success. The team at GTN are constantly looking for ways to grow and change and have already proven to adapt to the needs of their hosted agents. I love the accessibility of everyone at GTN – even as the number of hosted agents has grown, it still feels like we’re a small host agency where everyone knows each other.
I joined GTN new to the travel industry and I started with the Travel MBA program. I’m so glad that I took the plunge and joined the MBA program though – it was a great foundation for my business. The program modules are done through pre-recorded videos, but the real value of the program is in the mentoring and live learning. I loved the one-on-one mentoring calls with Lisa – she helped me so many times with everything from basic questions, to being a sounding board for business ideas, and helping me with out of the box thinking to help me with new clients. The live classes (which are also recorded if you miss them) are so helpful, and I found things I didn’t know in each class. When I joined GTN I had recently finished grad school for my MBA and another Masters Degree so I was hesitant to join the Travel MBA program because I was so opposed to the idea of ‘school’ and ‘homework’, but the MBA program has helped me grow as an entrepreneur and become more successful than I had expected.
When I finished the Travel MBA program I was worried that I'd be on my own, but I've still gotten so much support from the GTN team as well as from the FB group as my business has grown and my needs changed. I love the mentoring and business development calls, and could not go without the Friday emails keeping me in the loop on everything travel related. I absolutely recommend GTN for the Travel MBA program and as an amazing host agency.
GTN is an amazing host agency. Their leadership and support to be a travel agent and entrepreneur is great, being part of GTN and the network of agents, you feel very connected and encouraged by everyone, they are very helpful and willing to share their knowledge. It is a great community to be part of.
I was very disappointed with their Travel MBA program for what it offers at $3K though. I was expecting a higher level of training with the materials and mentoring program given that they use the "MBA" acronym. The training modules and videos are good for someone new to the industry and who wants to start their own business, but they lacked some of the basic information for a new travel agent like sample forms one needs to use. If you have no previous experience in this industry, you don't know what paperwork you need to give to a client. Other agents in the network were very helpful and shared their forms in the Facebook group when you asked for help. But this should be included in the Travel MBA program. The monthly mentoring calls are helpful when you have questions or issues, but if you are new, sometimes you don't know what to ask and the calls were not productive. I really enjoyed the calls, don't get me wrong. But if you are paying $3,000 you want to make sure you are being mentored. If I could do things differently, I would have signed up for GTN’s annual membership only and not paid for the Travel MBA. GTN offers an incredible amount of learning opportunities through webinars, videos, questions and answers from other travel agents in the FB group. That is how I learned most about the industry and running a travel agency. I hope this feedback is helpful to GTN (other travel agents shared the same opinion). They are a great host agency and their leaders are incredible at what they do, and I hope they just continue getting better and more successful.
Thank you for taking the time to review Gifted Travel Network (GTN) and share your thoughts on your experience. We are glad you feel that GTN has served many of your needs as a host agency. We are sorry you were disappointed with the Travel MBA program and what you received for your investment. We believe your disappointment stems from a common expectation from those new to the industry - that there is a template approach to selling travel. Selling travel is an art, not a science and you can’t teach art with templates and forms. Rather, you teach it with foundational and basic education combined with experiential coaching and mentoring. We have structured the Travel MBA program to be a combination of these. We have the static modules that give teach the basics, foundations and big picture understanding. We also have the monthly Live Classroom trainings which offer more detail and experiential training. Another super valuable benefit is the one on one coaching and mentoring, which is again, how you teach the art and not the science. In your statement you refer to the Modules and that there were things missing in the material. We believe you were just looking in the wrong place for the forms. The kind of forms you said are missing are in fact provided in the Live Classroom sessions where we offer more specifics/detail and can be accessed at any time. We believe the program far exceeds the $3000 investment when considering ALL of the benefits: the static modules, the 3 years worth of Live Classroom recordings, the fact that we create new content each month sharing experiential learning, the one-on-one coaching and mentoring with a 20-year industry veteran for 12 months, access to the private forums at GTN, AND all your hosting fees which give you access to a huge array of other benefits including GIFTE membership. The goal of the Travel MBA program is to make students feel confident as entrepreneurs AND selling travel. You said that our forums are very helpful in terms of finding what you need. That’s exactly what an entrepreneur needs - access to resources and support. We hope you see our perspective a little differently now.
I started my travel agency this spring. I have been an entrepreneur for 20 u area and wanted to start a travel business. In my experience product and details you can learn from your vendor partners. What is more difficult to find is a partnership in business. This host agency truly partners with you to help you build your business. You can learn the fundamentals of running a business as well as the ins and outs of the travel industry! Fantastic group of mentos!
I have been with GTN since April. I am currently in their "Travel MBA" program. I did a lot of reasearch before choosing GTN and it's a perfect fit. I am new to the industry, so I was a bit hesitant, but they offer all the support you need to be successful. From your mentor, to office people ,to other GTN members, the support is always there. It's not about pressuring you for sales every month, it's about giving you the tools to market yourself and your " medicine"...
I started working with GTN last October in their travel MBA program. From my first initial phone call with Jennifer Cochrane, I felt comfortable and confident that I had made the right decision. I know absolutely nothing about the travel industry or starting a business. But with Meredith Hill, Vanessa McGovern, Lisa Fletcher, and the rest of the GTN team, I have learned so much and feel nurtured and secure in this community. The GTN team has guided and assisted me as I discover my brilliance, develop my brand, and move forward in my entrepreneurial journey. I never feel judged or pressured. The amount of intuitive wisdom the team imparts is amazing and they have the unique ability to tease out negative mindset issues that may be holding me back. The best part is that GTN has so much more mentoring and education to offer through their sister company, GIFTE, so I know I will receive support as my business develops, and guidance to keep my business growing and progressing. I attended the Book More Travel Workshop and met their amazing community of travel agents. I got to hear first hand success stories of entrepreneurs who had followed their lead. GTN has made what can be a scary process (starting my own business), fun, exciting, and inspiring. I highly recommend GTN as a host agency and for mentoring.
I have been with GTN for 1 1/2 now and I love everything about it. I had some industry experience with another very weak host along with real brick & mortar travel school classes before I started the MBA program. I wanted to delve into a new career but was finding it very confusing and didn't care for the franchise model. The travel industry isn't so easy to navigate, I wasn't getting any traction with my decision making, until I found the MBA program. The membership in The Global Institute for Travel Entrepreneurs, was also a much needed find. I found my place to thrive. GTN and GIFTE answered so many of my questions and provided the support I needed to forge my way into being a travel entrepreneur! The camaraderie, level of support and positive nature of all involved is something I know I don't want to live without. We have fun, there's lots of energy, someone is always there when you need them, the suppliers are top notch and the leadership team has their pulse on what works in this industry. Marketing insights (especially social media), lead generation ideas, mindset, and unique/trending business strategies are always fresh and current. There is so much content consistently provided I'm always finding new tools and viewpoints to explore. I feel supported, valued and while I'm not a top earner (yet), as long as I'm engaged and doing my best I feel an equal to my fellow colleagues. If you are looking for a new host agency, where you still wear the pants because it's your own business or you are brand new and don't know where to put yourself, please give GTN a try. You won't be disappointed!
Gifted Travel Network is a wonderful team of women who devote their time in assisting other to succeed as travel entrepreneurs. They provide amazing resources, support, and state of the art training's. I have been a wedding planner for many years and have offered destination weddings and honeymoons through two resorts. They have assisted me in opening up my offerings not only as a planner but as a travel consultant, for that I am grateful. I appreciate their weekly calls and private forums. I look forward to growing with GTN, thank you ladies.
I can't say enough good things about the Gifted Travel Network ("GTN"); I decided last year to start a travel consulting business and conducted research on a number of host agencies. GTN's emphasis on empowering agents to achieve success really resonated with me, as did the opportunity and encouragement to develop my own brand.
The support and encouragement from the GTN team is amazing, but even more valuable is the community of agents, both experienced and new, who provide practical, real-world advice on everything from dealing with sticky client situations to trusted suppliers.
I'm extremely pleased with my decision to launch my travel business with the help and guidance of GTN, and wholeheartedly recommend them.
I decided to make the leap from corporate America to running my own travel business last year. I wanted to be certain I gave myself the best chance for success in the travel industry where I had a lot of personal experience but no professional experience at all. So, I did extensive research on host agencies that would provide the support I'd need as well as the education I required. Consistently, Gifted Travel Network came up as a front runner in both areas.
When I wanted to meet the folks at GTN personally before I signed up with them, they bent over backwards to make it happen. Maybe even more importantly, now that I'm a member of the GTN family, the amazing support and focus on helping me be successful in my business has been incredible. The Travel MBA program is fantastic. The mentoring with experienced agents is priceless. Combine these with the ability to communicate with the whole "tribe" regularly, and GTN has helped me build the momentum to launch my business, share my passion for travel and add new clients every week.
I wish there was a 6-star rating, because I can't recommend them highly enough!
With 36 years as a travel expert, 16 of those home-based with another host, it was a BIG deal for me to change host agencies. Without a doubt, I made the right choice. I did not realize how alone I had worked for the past 16 years with no contact with other agents or any BDMs. Having the support of the Gifted Travel Network Team has been amazing. There is constant access to support, product knowledge and business building tools. I love most of all how the agents support each other instead of seeing each other a rivals. GTN really encourages finding your expertise or your "brilliance" and building your business on that foundation. Even an old timer like me has found I had a lot to learn. Thankful I opened an email in July and discovered this wonderful host agency. The name alone "Gifted Travel Network" drew me to them.