InteleTravel, the Delray Beach, Fla.-based host agency that sits at No. 26 on Travel Weekly’s 2023 Power List, will join Travel Leaders Network in 2024. InteleTravel was previously a member of Ensemble.
James Ferrara, president and co-founder of InteleTravel, made the announcement during the host’s annual InteleTravelQuest conference at Cancun’s Moon Palace All-Inclusive Resort.
InteleTravel, which bills itself as the world’s largest host travel agency, said it is on track to produce about $800 million in sales this year via more than 90,000 independent contractors. Its annual growth is up more than 45% (the host reported sales of $550 million in 2022), and 2023 is a record year for the agency.
“InteleTravel continues to experience huge growth, and as we continue to improve advisor education and resources, we’ve found that our goals and needs have changed,” Ferrara said. “While we loved our previous partnerships, we’ve decided that Travel Leaders Network has become more aligned with our growth, and we are excited to join forces.”
Travel Leaders Network is owned by Internova Travel Group, No. 11 on Travel Weekly’s 2023 Power List. InteleTravel was a member of Travel Leaders before it affiliated with Ensemble in 2018.
“We are very pleased that InteleTravel is coming back to our network,” Travel Leaders Network president Roger Block said. “As members of TLN, they will find great value in all the solutions we offer our members — including the many new programs and tools Travel Leaders Network has developed since our last association. TLN has a long history of supporting all business models including the independent contractor model so we are the right home for one of the oldest and largest host agencies.”
InteleTravel remained a member of Ensemble through Ensemble’s organizational sea change. The travel agency group in 2022 was acquired by Navigatr Group (No. 16 on Travel Weekly’s Power List). With the acquisition, the former member-owned cooperative became a consortium and has been rebuilding its offerings for members since.
“Ensemble has done a remarkable job reimagining itself and relaunching the brand,” Ferrara said. “Our decision to change affiliation is in no way a criticism of Ensemble but instead a complex evaluation of InteleTravel’s specific needs and portfolio, and a recognition that TLN is a better fit at this moment in time. We do not change consortia capriciously, and have been a long term, engaged and loyal member with each affiliation.”
When InteleTravel had renewed its contract with Ensemble in September 2022, InteleTravel had been the largest member of the consortium.
“Ensemble is clarifying its position as the leading consortium for travel professionals,” the consortium’s president, Michael Johnson, said in a statement. “Our tools, resources, programs and technology are specifically designed to elevate the craft of the travel advisor and enhance the services they are providing for their clients.
“We have made remarkable progress in fulfilling that vision in the past year, with even more exciting things to come,” he added.
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