As winter comes upon us, the largest gathering of travel professionals in the world is heading to Las Vegas for Travel Week. More than 10,000 travel professionals, travel consultants and suppliers alike, gather to reinvent themselves. This is not a gamble but a guaranteed success formula for travel professionals who want to survive and thrive.
Just think about it. Our first event was held 10 years ago with just over 500 attendees. At the time, I thought this was a huge success and the idea of expecting more than that (10,000!) was just a dream. But we constantly reinvented ourselves and looked to make the travel professionals’ experience even more educational. What came from this initiative is what we now call Travel Week. This is the week when a series of other events are held in addition to Luxury Travel Expo. These include the annual conferences for the Travel Institute, formerly the Institute of Certified Travel Counselors (ICTA) and Signature Travel Network, which was previously Leisure Travel Network. The very fact that these two very important travel associations have new names is an indication that they have reinvented themselves. You get the idea: Change breeds success.
We Honor the Best
During Luxury Travel Expo, Travel Agent will honor five Leaders in Luxury: Maurice Bonham-Carter, CEO and president of Island Destinations; David Morris, Silversea’s executive vice president, worldwide sales and marketing; Marilyn Conroy, Silversea’s senior vice president, sales and marketing for the Americas; Roland Largay, co-owner, chairman and CEO of Largay Travel; and Horst Schulze, president and CEO of West Paces Hotel Group.
These professionals all have a few things in common. You guessed it: reinvention and change. And, most importantly, the common sense to attempt and see an opportunity. The future and change must be on your mind at all times. Don’t just talk about it—act on it. Some good examples are in our 30 Under 30 cover story. Read, absorb and react, because these young travel professionals are changing the future of the industry. And you have Travel Agent’s promise to guide you and help you along the way.
See you in Las Vegas, the reinvention capital of the world.