ALL ABOUT YOU — READERS’ LIVES
THIS WEEK
Emma Wilby travel sales adviser
Thomson, Elgin Anthem’s godmother changes her tune about cruising
Travel agent by day, songstress by night – that’s Kinloss-based Emma Wilby’s life. In April, the 27-year-old took on a rather different role from her work at Thomson’s
Elgin branch, in north Scotland. Emma was named godmother of Royal Caribbean’s Anthem of the Seas after winning a hard-fought competition run by Travel Weekly and the cruise line, and took to the stage in a dazzling dress to sing at the ship’s naming ceremony. Alongside her travel agency role, Emma juggles working as a dramatherapist – a
form of psychotherapy – with singing in the Kinloss Military Wives Choir (her husband, Stephen, is in the Royal Engineers), being stepmum to six-year-old Savannah and, now, an ambassador for Anthem. “Being godmother to Anthem is a lifetime commitment, which is a huge honour,”
says Emma, whose family’s shipbuilding heritage was part of the reason she entered the competition. “I had never been on a cruise before the ceremony and I have become a real
convert. It has been brilliant to talk to customers about it first-hand. I am loving batting away any misconceptions people have.” At her branch, Emma is making the most of her new role in other ways – during a cruise evening in September, she will once again don her ‘godmother dress’. Before that, though, it’s back to the spotlight for the passionate songstress, who will perform at Travel Weekly’s Agent Achievement Awards on July 7. “I can’t wait to experience it again,” she says. “Last time it was incredible,
Emma’s CV
● November 2014: Started part-time at Thomson in Elgin
● 2013: launched Bluebird Dramatherapy and Counselling
● 2012-13: Masters degree in psychoanalytic dramatherapy
● 2010-11: Travelled around Australia and New Zealand
● 2006-09: Drama degree
but I do get stage fright and quite nervous. “Once the adrenaline rush strikes, I really enjoy it.”
Emma will meet Craig
Yates, team captain from British choir group Only Boys Aloud, for some vocal coaching towards the end of the month, as she did before her inaugural performance. “I am constantly
rehearsing with the choir,” she says.
Would you like to be profiled on Readers’ Lives? Tell us why it should be you! Email:
juliet.dennis@
travelweekly.co.uk
34 •
travelweekly.co.uk — 25 June 2015 EMMA’S SALES TIPS
✪ Be people-focused: Face-to-face contact is so important – it’s one of the many reasons that customers still come into our shops instead of just booking online. Treat each customer like an individual.
✪ Know your product: I find it much easier to sell a holiday to a country I have been to. It allows you to make personal recommendations.
✪ Pool your knowledge: If you haven’t been somewhere, draw on the help of colleagues who have.
✪ Don’t be afraid to make suggestions: Many people come in with a general idea of what they want. Speaking and listening to them might throw up a type of holiday or an area of the world they had not considered.
Emma graces the front cover of the April 23 edition of Travel Weekly
READERS’ LIVES
Emma (second left) and the Kinloss Military Wives Choir
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76