Vacancy Travel Expert

VACANCY:EXPERIENCED TRAVEL SALES EXPERT

Tailor-made Holidays sales team – JOURNEYSCAPE

This is a fantastic opportunity to use your North American travel sales experience to further your career in travel working for an established UK Tour Operator as we expand into the United States and Canada. The role will suit an experienced North America sales consultant who is interested in being closely involved in the launch of the USA and Canada product within our business.

If you have travel industry experience, are passionate about North America and want to be part of a longestablished (+40yrs), successful and ambitious award-winning company where you can indulge your love of travel and enthusiasm for the continent, then we would love to hear from you.

Role Profile:

As a Travel Expert, you are the face of the company – a company that lives and breathes tailor-made travel.  Articulate, confident and self-motivated, you’ll handle enquiries from a varied range of discerning clients right through from their first contact until they come home. Using your first-hand travel experience, your product and geographical knowledge and your passion for the destinations, you’ll design and sell thoughtfully crafted once-ina-lifetime holidays that not only match your clients’ interests and budget but exceed their expectations and ensure they become advocates of both you and the company.

Responsibilities:

• Take on tailor-made holiday enquiries communicating primarily by phone and email but also face to face at occasional travel shows or client events.
• Design and produce unique, considered and accurately costed holiday quotes and subsequent itinerary revisions as required.
• As the client’s single point of contact, provide first class customer service whilst progressing efficiently towards closing the sale.
• Book all travel arrangements including flights, hotels, excursions, and ground transportation with our local partners.
• Ensure the cost and content accuracy of supplier confirmations received.
• Take full ownership of administrative and operational tasks for your bookings, including the production of the travel documents.
• Exceed challenging but realistic monthly and annual sales targets and meet Key Performance Indicators, including customer service client feedback.
• Ensure product and destination knowledge is up to date through attendance of regular internal and external product training and pro-active self-learning.
• Travel to North America on educational trips to research and experience the product and destinations.
• Work closely with your colleagues, sharing your knowledge and looking after absent colleagues’ bookings to the same high standards as your own.
• Work closely with the Product team to help build and develop the North America portfolio.
• Support Marketing and Customer Service department initiatives with trip reports, sharing client feedback and occasional written content for the website and brochure.

Knowledge and experience required:

• Travel industry sales experience. Preferably designing and selling Tailor-made holidays to the USA and Canada.
• Demonstrable passion for and geographical knowledge of the USA and Canada, including first hand travel experience there.
• Excellent communication skills in English, both written and oral.
• A polite manner and the ability to easily develop rapport with a differing range of personalities.
• A first-class unwavering approach to customer service and care.
• Target driven and sales motivated.
• Strong attention to detail, an organised approach to work, a well-developed sense of responsibility and the ability to set and achieve high standards.
• Ability to prioritise a high workload, multi-task and work to strict deadlines in a pressurised sales environment.
• Flexible and co-operative approach to work, prepared to take on extra tasks, solve problems and support colleagues as required.
• Ability to work independently under pressure and unsupervised plus the desire to contribute to the success of the team.
• Resilience to the inevitable setbacks that come with the territory in a sales-focussed role and a willingness to learn positively from them.
• A good understanding of reservations systems an advantage.

Package/benefits:

• A market-leading, highly competitive basic salary with uncapped commission and bonus.
• 31 days annual leave (incl. bank holidays, increasing with service).
• Hybrid working: 3 days in the office, 2 working from home. Working hours are Mon-Fri, 9am-5:30pm with
1hr lunch. We work some Saturdays with a day off earned in lieu).
• Regular educational trips to North America.
• We are supportive of personal holidays throughout our portfolio with fantastic offers and discounts
available to staff, family and friends.
• Staff also have access to ‘friends and family’ discounts and special offers from sister companies in the
Kuoni/Der Touristik UK travel group to which we belong.
• Pension scheme.
• Life Assurance.
• Income Protection Insurance against long-term absence from work.
• Cycle to work scheme.

Journey Latin America was founded over 40 years ago out of a love of the continent, and we are now spreading our wings north to the United States and Canada. Our shared passion for travel means we have always had a strong, sociable, and informal company culture and is one of the reasons our staff retention is so high. Every Thursday afternoon the whole company comes together to enjoy a well-earned break as the senior managers wheel out the well-stocked drinks and snacks trolley. Other popular events in the company calendar include the summer and Christmas parties. Many staff also socialise outside of work, taking full advantage of the excellent pubs and restaurants in the area. Located in Stamford Brook, right next to one of the city’s loveliest stretches of the River Thames, we have numerous parks and green spaces right on our doorstep. Chiswick and Hammersmith offer a great array of shops, cafes, and restaurants to enjoy within easy walking distance. Whilst the company has an independent spirit, we are proud to be part of the Kuoni/Der Touristik UK travel group.

To apply for this vacancy, please email your CV with a covering letter detailing your relevant experience and suitability for the role. Please also include a travel profile with details of the North American destinations and dates you have visited.

Please email to: Antonio Vaquero Please email to: Antonio Vaquero hr@journeylatinamerica.co.uk