Scaling up
With tech innovations, hybrid working tools and more home-based sellers than ever, homeworking agencies are raising the bar for the industry, finds Rhodri Andrews
T
he only way is up when it comes to homeworking, with agencies reporting impressive
year-on-year results and larger groups highlighting how their homeworking divisions are among the strongest performing arms of their business. Bookings have increased, headcounts are
up and average booking values are showing remarkable resilience, despite the continuing economic pressures on finances. And this is all at a time when customers have a greater choice of homeworking agencies than ever before. Travel Counsellors’ director of franchise
sales Matt Harding says: “Last year marked a major milestone for us, as we surpassed £1 billion in global sales and this trajectory carried into early 2025, with 15 of our top 20 sales days ever recorded during peak season.”
T£7.8m
single biggest trading day in January
4 JULY 2025
I88%ncrease in InteleTravel’s revenues in 2024 compared with 2023
The picture is rosy at the rapidly expanding
JLT Group too. Founder Janine Marshall says: “Over the past 12 months, our total travel sales have reached over £12 million, with March alone accounting for £1.5 million and £2.5 million in January for peaks.”
HEAD FOR HEIGHTS ravel Counsellors’
It’s not just the financials that are growing at these homeworking agencies, it’s the number of people on their books too. Inspire’s head of business development and training, Sam Fisher, says: “In just three years, Inspire has experienced remarkable growth, expanding from a modest team of 15 homeworking agents in 2022 to nearly 100 today.” Not Just Travel reported it has grown
“substantially” to more than 700 homeworking consultants, too. Making sure these growing ranks of homeworkers are
equipped with the know-how and confidence to sell is equally important, as Independent Travel Experts’ (ITE) 12-week training programme has proved. “Since October 2023, we have seen a massive increase in homeworkers – it coincided with the launch of a new-to-travel programme,” says Gary Gillespie, ITE managing director. “After the pandemic, we had gone down to about 75 homeworkers but we have 130 now, and are bringing on three or four a month.”
travelweekly.co.uk
PICTURE: Shutterstock/Trzykropy
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