North America Travel Trade Symposium

The North American Travel Trade Symposium was a totally FREE and exclusive half day event made available to BoBI 2012 exhibitors. Led by four of the foremost authorities on inbound travel from Canada and the USA, the event was designed to give delegates an invaluable insight into the North American travel trade market and how to gain more business from this lucrative sector.

The North American Travel Trade Symposium took place during build-up on Tuesday 13 March in Concourse Suites 19-20 (by the entrance to Hall 9) between 11.00am and 3.30pm. Admission was completely free and included a networking buffer and afternoon tea.

The Event

Tuesday 13 March 2012
11.00am – 3.30pm
Concourse Suites 19-20, The NEC, Birmingham

The Programme

The Speakers

Suzanne Hall
Senior Director
Ensemble Travel Group

Suzanne Hall is senior director, marketing and development/land products, for Ensemble Travel Group. Currently, she is responsible for the creation and marketing of several of the organization’s private-label product lines, many of which appeal to the affluent traveler. Hall is a member of the Ensemble Travel Group Marketing-Luxury Advisory Committee, and also serves on the advisory boards of Luxury Travel Expo, Classic Vacations (Ensemble representative), Omni Hotels, and the Fairmont Customer Advisory Board. In 2009, she served as godmother of the Avalon Affinity, making Hall the first American selected to christen an Avalon Waterways ship.

Her more than 30 years experience in the travel industry involves management roles with several tour operators, including CIT Tours and IST Cultural Tours, where she launched "Collectibles for the Inquisitive Mind" and "Beyond Cruising." While at Air France, Hall helped launch the carrier’s first tour subsidiary, Jet Vacations, and created the exclusive product line for the Air France Concorde.

Known for her adventuresome spirit, Hall has traveled the world searching for authentic, real-life experiences. For her, these discoveries, from both mainstream and off-the-beaten-path destinations, have helped Hall craft programs that help others better understand and appreciate our world’s many diverse cultures and complexions.

James Shillinglaw
Editor-in-Chief
Travallliance

James Shillinglaw, CTC, a veteran travel editor and journalist, serves as editorial director and editor in chief for Travalliance, which produces two monthly travel industry trade magazines, Agent@Home and Vacation Agent. Agent@Home is delivered to 19,000 professional agents working from home, while Vacation Agent, serves 35,000 leisure travel-selling agents with a mix of editorial covering cruises, hotels and resorts, and tours and packages

Shillinglaw also oversees TravelPulse, a daily online and e-mailed newsletter, which offers a summary of the day’s top travel industry news and product information, as well as regular commentary about the industry and a regular TravelPulse TV segment. He also helps program Virtual Travel Events, an online series of travel trade shows, including Agent@Home Expo and Vacation Agent Expo.

Prior to joining Travalliance in 2004, Shillinglaw was editor-in-chief of New York-based Travel Agent magazine, a newsweekly that provided news analysis, features and destination reports to 50,000 travel agents. Before being named editor in chief, Shillinglaw served as editor, executive editor, news director and senior story editor during his 13 years with the magazine.

Shillinglaw was the recipient of the American Society of Travel Agents’ 2003 Travel Journalist of the Year award, which recognizes a journalist who has contributed to the promotion of the travel agent community. His extensive body of writing and reporting includes articles on travel agents, cruise lines, hotels and resorts, tour operators, airlines, car rentals and travel technology. He also has served as a speaker at top travel industry event and has moderated seminar panels at travel trade shows and conferences.

Gary M. Fee
President
Outside Sales Support Network Association (OSSN)

Gary founded the Outside Sales Support Network Association (OSSN) in 1990. As a 35-year vereran of the travel industry, and former travel agency owner of Let’s Travel in St Louis, MO, Mr. Fee recognized the important roll that the Home-Based professional would play in our industry. Let’s Travel, received national recognition as "Cruise Agency of The Year" for Carnival Cruise Lines in 1983. Agency cruise sales exceeded 3.2 million dollars a year.

“OSSN, now in its 22nd year as a major travel industry association, is recognized as the association dedicated to helping its professional travel agent members to build successful business relationships with travel industry suppliers. OSSN membership consists of 8000 travel agent professionals including Home-Based Agencies, Host Agencies who contract with Independent Contractors, and Allied Supplier Members across the USA. With 78 Active Chapters, OSSN presently has more active chapters than any other travel industry trade association in the country. OSSN’s international membership also includes agents in the Caribbean, Central and South America and Europe.

OSSN and Gary have been responsible for the many IATAN changes that have helped Independent Contractors and Non ARC agencies secure more recognition with IATA through our work with IATA during the conception of the TSI (Travel Sales Intermediary) program. OSSN has been the catalyst in the travel industry for the many changes that have taken place on behalf of the professional Home-Based Seller of Travel.

Gary has written for many travel industry trade magazines on the subject of “Independent Contractor and Home-Based Agency Issues and Answers” and is Co-Author of the travel industry’s first, "Official Outside Sales Travel Agent Manual.” This publication has exceeded all expectations with 20,000 copies sold to the trade in the first three editions of the publication.

Chris Robinson
The Chris Robinson Travel Show, Toronto

Chris has been steeped in travel all his life. After leading roles at Thomson Holidays and First Choice in the UK, he came to Canada to help create the Signature Vacations brand. After leading the marketing teams at Signature and Sunquest, he created Chris Robinson Associates, providing consulting services to the travel industry and producing the most popular travel shows on Canadian radio: the Chris Robinson Travel Shows on Newstalk 1010 Toronto and CJAD 800 Montreal; he recently celebrated his 800th show.

He advised the Canadian Tourism Commission and is a Board Member of Discover America Canada. He is a professional travel writer, co-author of an industry textbook, and is a Fellow of the Institute of Travel and Tourism and of the Royal Geographical Society.