All the behind the scenes goss from Magellan’s conference

By Hannah Edensor

Jealous you’re not living it up at the Magellan Conference for 2017? Well you can live vicariously through all these tidbits.

In his opening address at the conference, Chairman of Magellan Travel Group, Andrew Jones said, “It was our effective partnerships from the beginning upon which Magellan grew, and it is our effective partnerships today that make us the $1B Group that we are.”

“Now more than ever, I am able to inject more time and more focus on the strategy and direction of the Group, a Group of which I was a founding partner and one of which I am incredibly proud.”

Following on with his MD address, Andrew Macfarlane, having recently joined the Board of Magellan upon Kevin Dale’s retirement, further reiterated the importance of effective partnerships to both Members and Suppliers alike.

Summarising financial results for FY17, Macfarlane highlighted the pressure that the European downturn and airline price deflation had on the profitability of all Groups including Magellan. He noted that TTV had still grown and that profit at $8.7M, whilst slightly down on FY16, was better than expectations.

2a. Magellan Members celebrating in New MMP launch session

Macfarlane again individually welcomed new members to their first Magellan conference, commenting, “In the last 12 months, 10 new Members and an additional seven outlets have joined the Group, giving us a network of 130 Agents around the country.”

Macfarlane then announced the new and exclusive luxury affinity partnership that Magellan Travel Group now has with Signature Travel Network.

Those in attendance were then treated to an insightful and engaging address from The Honourable Kim Beazley, AC. Beazley gave his keynote address in a pre-lunch session sponsored by American Airlines and spoke on the topic of “Trump’s America and Australian Interests”.

Thursday afternoon’s conference agenda saw Magellan members take part in member service workshops covering topics from Learning and Development to Technology.

Sponsored by Air New Zealand, the L&D workshop was presented by subject matter experts Resurg, Auridian and Cornerstone People Solutions and further highlighted the suite of member services that have been rolled out by Magellan over the last 12 months.

3. VA & MTG

Technology was another key theme at the conference with a dedicated workshop sponsored by Expedia which featured presentations from industry experts Amadeus, Sabre, Travelport and Tramada.

Magellan Marketing Manager, Michelle Kerr officially launched the Groups new Magellan Members Portal which will provide Magellan members and preferred partners a fantastic platform and tool to conduct business effectively.

The Group’s intranet site is now live and members were this afternoon in celebration of what will quickly become an integral technology platform for them and their teams.

The live demonstration showcased the gateway to some new and exciting digital marketing platforms and other marketing and technology services which Kerr highlighted will be unveiled to the Group when the day gets underway tomorrow.

4a. APT & MTG

Macfarlane said, “It is indeed exciting times when we continue to grow and evolve the services that we make available to our members.

“We have this year, more than ever before, been able to add considerable breadth of services and support to our members. In addition to this, our Preferred Partners, also more than ever before, have access to Group resources and tools which support and expand the ways in which they can partner with our members.”

The first full day of the 2017 Magellan Conference wrapped up with a spectacular evening at Sandalford Winery, Swan Valley.

After pre-dinner drinks and an opportunity to explore the winery, which was courtesy of Virgin Australia, guests enjoyed dinner in the Underground Cellar and a fun and informative Q&A with Wine Maker, Hope Metcalf and Magellan Chairman, Andrew Jones.

As has been the tradition for many years, APT sponsored this conference dinner, reflecting a lasting and solid relationship held between the two parties.

Michelle Kerr demonstrating NEW MMP – live demonstration

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andrew jones andrew macfarlane magellan travel group michelle kerr