Day two of the Travel Counsellors Conference kicked off bright and early with two amazing guest speakers – Ailbhe and Izzy from ‘Izzy’s Wheel’s’.
These two sisters founded the company back in 2016. Izzy, who was born with spina bifida, is wheelchair-bound, and Ailbhe who was studying at NCAD came up with the idea to design wheel covers. They have worked with brands all over the world, including Disney, Barbie and Marvel. Ailbhe and Izzy have a very positive outlook on life and encouraged all the TC’s to always dream big.
Natalie Aspinall, DMC partner for Travel Counsellors spoke about some of the new partnerships that will be coming and the plans for streamlining some of their current contracts.
Jim Eastwood, Global Sales Director, was up next for Tips at the Table. Each table had a theme of Brand, Teams, Dreaming Big and Monday Morning and they came up with ideas for each theme and how they would work for Travel Counsellors. The morning ended with an update from lunch sponsor Matt Tarrant, Qatar Airways, who spoke about new route timings with Dublin Doha going back to twice daily.
Cathy Burke, MD Travel Counsellors in Ireland, thanked all the suppliers for being there before the Travel Market began. The Travel Market was a great opportunity for each Travel Counsellor to speak to suppliers about updates, news, offers and how best to sell to their clients.
Ciara McConnell received an outstanding achievement award from colleagues Cathy Burke and Bernie Whelan with her brother and niece Lucy in attendance to present the award to her.
To conclude the conference, there was a Gala Dinner with pre-drinks sponsored by Norwegian Cruise Line. At the Gala Dinner, there was some final awards presented for:
- Business Partner of the Year – Blue Insurance/Jeanette Taylor
- Most Helpful TC – Jamie Thomas
- Top Cruise Sales – Sinead Lonergan
- Best Business Growth – Sarah Appleton
- Top New Starter Corporate – Kate Walsh
- Top Performing TC – Sarah McCarthy
- Top New Starter Leisure – Michael Kelly
- Top Performing TC Corporate – Lorraine Lawless
The evening ended in style with music from the Pat Fitz Band and all the TC’s danced the night away. There was a caricaturist on hand for some fantastic imagery and a magic mirror for very creative selfies.
