5 Future Leaders to Watch List, 2023

Anyone who still thinks that travel advisors are a thing of the past need only consider this year’s attendees of the Future Leaders in Travel Retreat, an event produced by TravelAge West.

Our sixth-annual Future Leaders attracted a record number of qualified applicants, and out of hundreds of advisors, only 64 were chosen to attend the event, which was held at Hyatt Ziva/Zilara Rose Hall in Jamaica this year.

And this group of advisors left an impression. Hardly a day went by after the event where a staff member didn’t receive an email or a phone call raving about the quality of attendees. 

“Mark my words: Future Leaders’ advisors are the ones to watch,” said Jacqueline Hurst, director of trade recruitment and engagement for the retreat. “I could not have asked for a better group of applicants for this year’s event. The fact that we had a record number of qualified applicants with truly impressive annual sales actually made my job that much more challenging.”

Mark my words: Future Leaders’ advisors are the ones to watch.

A big part of Future Leaders’ success comes down to referrals. Past participants and agency owners alike were only too happy to spread the word about it to their talented colleagues.

“You know an event has a winning strategy when your recruitment efforts are 100% word of mouth,” Hurst said. “This younger generation of advisors is all about supporting each other and sharing best practices for mutual success.”

And while it was hard to pick just five of this year’s attendees to highlight, this cohort demonstrates the hard work, leadership skills, professionalism and passion for travel that make the future of this event — and industry — so bright.    

Katie Brown 

Advising Since: 2020. Projected Sales: $2 million. 

Katie Brown came to travel uniquely: The former children’s pastor wanted to bring in extra income to afford her son’s adoption but, as she openly admits, she’s not very crafty.

“So, making things to sell wasn’t going to happen,” she said. “But what I do know is travel. And the rest, as they say, is history.” 

But it wasn’t easy: She became an advisor a month before the pandemic began, and then her son was born three months early.

“I had joined the industry thinking I was going to book just Disney, and all of the sudden, sitting in a NICU in New Orleans, my mind was opened up to all the things I could book for my clients,” she said. “When we returned home with our son, and the world slowly started to open again, I had to make the choice of whether I was going to go back to work — spending most of my paycheck on childcare — or try to do this travel thing full-time.”

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Fortunately, she took the leap, and she’s already one of the top 10 advisors at her agency, Travelmation. Her success can be attributed to several factors, such as her fun personality — which she displays well on social media — and her ability to build relationships and lead with confidence.

“I had a professor once who told me, ‘Fundraising is friend-raising,’ and I believe that sales is the same thing,” she said. “I’ve never been shy about telling people about my business, and asking for business. If a friend was getting married, I asked if I could plan their honeymoon. If a friend worked for a large law firm, I asked if they ever needed help with their corporate travel.”

I’ve never been shy about telling people about my business, and asking for business. If a friend was getting married, I asked if I could plan their honeymoon. If a friend worked for a large law firm, I asked if they ever needed help with their corporate travel.

Clearly, there’s a lot agents can learn from Brown — so, it’s no surprise that her agency appointed her to their supervisor team, a role in which she helps more than 1,300 advisors.

“I love sales, but I also love helping people grow, learn and achieve,” she said. That’s what I get to do as a supervisor: I help new agents enter the industry on the right foot, and support them as they try to make their way.”

Brittani Robertson

Advising Since: 2021. Projected 2023 Sales: $900,000.

Some people learn about the world through books, but Brittani Robertson, owner of B Luxe Escapes, learns by doing. Growing up in a military family, the luxury advisor spent her childhood living in different cultures at an early age (even beginning her schooling in Japan, where her family lived for six years).

Following her husband’s retirement from the National Football League, Robertson — a mom of four children — wanted to share that same passion for exploration and appreciation of world cultures with others. 

“As with my family, my dream for my clients is that I empower them to collect the many experiences this world has to offer,” she said.

As with my family, my dream for my clients is that I empower them to collect the many experiences this world has to offer.

Despite only officially becoming a Gifted Travel Network advisor in December 2021, Robertson expects her sales to reach nearly $1 million this year. She credits this, in part, to living in a family-friendly neighborhood, post-pandemic desire for travel and her passion.

“When you are passionate about something, it shows up in your personality,” she said. “I am also a big advocate of not letting your kids stop you from traveling — take them with you and other times, leave them at home. I do this, and I know it has been an inspiration to others.”

Tawnee Sons 

Advising Since: 2012. Projected 2023 Sales: $2.3 million (personal sales) and $23 million (the franchise she co-owns). 

Tawnee Sons has travel advising in her blood. Her mom is also a travel advisor, and she grew up taking cruises and escorting groups with her. This sparked Sons’ love of cruises — so much so that in 2011, she joined Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) for one year before deciding to become a travel advisor herself.

“Working at NCL gave me such a huge advantage,” she said. “I learned how to deal with the level of multitasking and chaos needed to be productive in this job, because some of the best sales leaders in the industry showed me how to work smarter, and not harder. I knew that if I wanted to be a big producer or run an agency, I would need to find ways to structure my days effectively and figure out what I needed to know to be successful in each sale, and how to streamline the service needed for that sale later.” 

By year three, Sons had already hit her $1 million sales mark, which she credits to gaining confidence, building relationships and growing her clientele.

Now she co-owns and serves as chief operations officer of World2Sea Inc., a multimillion-dollar Cruise Planners franchise with 17 travel advisors. 

Plus, she has numerous accolades under her belt — including a TravelAge West 2023 Trendsetter nomination for Best Group Booking Sales Effort for a charter cruise she co-organized in partnership with Celebrity Cruises and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. 

I knew that if I wanted to be a big producer or run an agency, I would need to find ways to structure my days effectively and figure out what I needed to know to be successful in each sale, and how to streamline the service needed for that sale later.

And while Sons has achieved the kind of career most advisors could only dream about, she is just getting started.

“In five years, I would like to see my agency double in growth and be a home for some of the best sales leaders in the industry,” she said. “I want our franchise to be a place people want to work — always encouraging growth and collaboration over competition.” 

Cole Kirkpatrick

Advising Since: 2023. Projected Sales: $800,000. 

The sky is the limit for Cole Kirkpatrick, the 25-year-old advisor who joined the industry this January and is expecting to reach $800,000 in sales by December. Kirkpatrick credits his early success to getting hired at the right agency: Classic Travel Connection, where his mentor, Christen Perry, is a veteran travel advisor.

Kirkpatrick says she was the perfect person to help him pivot from his very different former career as director of student ministries for a local church.

“That church cared about me and helped me grow into my early adulthood,” he said. “So, I wondered if I could find a role where I felt valued, seen as moldable by people decades ahead of me and worth investing in. And in my final weeks transitioning out of that local church, I met one of the best leaders I’ve ever encountered: my now boss.”

I pursued a career in travel because my curiosity to see the world’s people drove me to help others meet their not-so-nearby neighbors.

But it was not just great mentoring and partnerships that have allowed Kirkpatrick to succeed. He is transparent with clients about his age and his experience in the industry, but his passion for travel — he has visited 27 countries (21 in Europe) — and his dedication to ongoing supplier education helps instill confidence and build relationships.     

“I’m nowhere near stopping,” he said. “I pursued a career in travel because my curiosity to see the world’s people drove me to help others meet their not-so-nearby neighbors. We’re all better for it, and if I can help someone have the type of vacation, adventure or experience I had as a 21-year-old in Nigeria, our world will be a much better place.”

Hope Reynolds

Advising Since: 2022. Projected Sales: $730,000. 

Her agency, Cupcake Castles Travel Company, calls her “a shot out of a cannon.” And it even awarded her with its “Rockstar Rookie” award last year. She was also described as “most innovative” by her peers at the Future Leaders in Travel Retreat. 

What does Hope Reynolds credit all these accolades and already impressive sales to? The personable mom of three praises the fellow female advisors at her agency, her family and her clients, but she also has some innate personality traits that have allowed her to succeed.

“Being an innovative person is a blend of a few things: confidence, creativity, openness, adaptability and passion,” she said. “I’m always seeking feedback from clients and colleagues because I am passionate about being the best version of myself. I live by the motto: ‘I can’t change what I don’t know.’ Being open to change and adapting without taking things personally is important in any business. I have also always been an exceptionally creative person in every aspect of my life.”

I have a knack for organizing and planning, the determination and grit to never stop learning and, above all, I absolutely love people.

In fact, Reynolds became an advisor last August after a career as a bakery owner. But juggling her work, raising small kids and switching off with her husband, who works daily 13-hour shifts, meant she often had to stay up until 3 a.m. to get everything done. She knew it was time for a change.

“I have a knack for organizing and planning, the determination and grit to never stop learning and, above all, I absolutely love people,” she said. “This beautiful concoction led me to the travel industry, and I couldn’t be happier helping others create not only vacations, but lifelong memories.”