More customers taking longer holidays and spending more on their land arrangements: these are some of the trends identified by TravelManagers as having contributed to yet another record month of sales in February 2023.
Executive general manager, Michael Gazal, said despite the company now having fewer personal travel managers (PTMs) than in pre-COVID times, February 2023 was its strongest month on record, adding a further 29 percent to January’s already record figures.
“Compared with February 2019, our total sales volume increased by more than 77 percent, but even more significantly, PTMs’ average commissions increased by more than 81 percent,” he reports.
PTMs agree that business has never been busier and say they are feeling positive as a result of their strong start to 2023.
“It’s great to see the travel industry thriving again after a tough couple of years,” confirms Karen Whitehead, who is based in the Albury region. “Running a busy small business can be quite stressful, but it’s great to have the support from our national partnership team and my community of fellow personal travel managers.”
According to Gazal, much of the growth has come from long haul travel, with sales for Europe in February this year having grown by 71 percent compared with February 2019. High-value domestic bookings have also contributed to the stellar results: sales for Australia have increased by 51 percent over the same period.
“We are seeing a general trend towards clients spending more on their hotels and local experiences: accommodation is up 40 percent and tours by 27 percent,” Gazal said.
“These are sales results that we would not have dreamed about pre-COVID, and they reflect a strong growth trend across the entire industry. A widespread acceptance of service fees indicates that our customers appreciate the expertise and experience of our PTMs more than ever: combined with their ability to earn up to 95 percent of at source commissions, it’s an exciting time to be in travel.”
Featured Image: Michael Gazal (TravelManagers)
