The Institute of Travel and Tourism has awarded The Holiday Franchise Company with ITT Recognition for its in-house training programme 'Journey to Success' for the first time. ITT Recognition is granted to companies who can demonstrate that their training programme meets industry standards and is adding value to professionals within the travel and tourism sector.
The Holiday Franchise Company supports those looking to create their own branded, fully bonded, online travel agency; based on their own travel experiences. The franchise business is backed by multi-award-winning Holidaysplease; which was started in 2002 on a £6k investment, now has a turnover in excess of £30m and is currently ranked the number one travel agent on Trustpilot.
The application was ratified for an initial 3 year period by ITT's Education & Training Committee, made up of industry professionals from across the aviation, travel, tourism and hospitality sector; as well as academics from ITT's seven university Centres of Excellence.
Announcing the decision, on behalf of ITT's Education & Training Committee, Chair, Claire Steiner, explained, "We are delighted that The Holiday Franchise Company has gained ITT Recognition, at a time when many in the industry are considering self-employment and may choose to invest in a franchise. The 'Journey to Success' training programme addresses not only the complexities of running your own modern travel business, but also helps franchisees develop their sales, marketing and networking skills; driving up professionalism in our industry".
Joanne Aldridge, Head of Franchise at The Holiday Franchise Company said “We are extremely proud to be the first own-brand franchise model to be awarded this recognition. Our team's background in the travel industry enables us to share years of experience with our franchisees and ensures our onboarding training and ongoing support covers the skills needed to set them up for success". The company has sustainably grown its number of franchisees over the last four years to twenty three and is experiencing an increase in franchise enquiries, due to the fall out of Covid-19. Business Development Manager, Luke Western added "For us, it's not about quantity, it's about quality, we look for like-minded people who share our core values".