TORONTO — Great things await when a well-known and respected industry veteran joins forces with an equally well-known and respected industry brand.

Case in point: Jane Clementino and Discover the World Canada.

With 30 years of industry experience, Clementino is best known for her time at WestJet and WestJet Vacations, where she was Global Director of Indirect Sales. At trade events for WestJet, Clementino’s enthusiasm, energy and natural rapport with the retail travel community helped forge WestJet’s connections with the trade.

When Clementino joined Discover the World Canada in May 2021, her appointment took the company from strength to strength, after 28 years with Joanne Lundy at the helm. Lundy continues to contribute to Discover the World Canada on a part-time project basis.

We caught up with Clementino to see how she’s settling into her new post, and to get her take on what post-pandemic travel will look like.

Discover the World has offices all over the world, and it’s been in business for 40 years, since 1981. The company specializes in outsourcing sales and marketing services. Clementino says that with the pandemic, Discover the World Canada has expanded its offering to tap new opportunities. 

“Building on the strength of our core business, and being cognizant of the current market conditions, we are expanding our service offerings and leveraging our capabilities to provide additional sales and service solutions,” says Clementino.

“We understand how difficult it will be for suppliers to have the desired sales coverage and resource allocation post the pandemic, so our roaster of seasoned professionals are available to support any long and short term supplier needs by providing consulting services, package sales services, which create specific custom solutions for market suppliers, and tactical services offering BDM support, and inside sales support,” she adds.

We asked Clementino how will travel change post-pandemic. And what will never change?

“Travel post-pandemic will be more complex and I believe travellers will look for more professional travel advice, be extremely conscious of the travel requirements and conditions of the destination, and be aware of the terms and conditions provided by the travel supplier selected,” she says. “What will stand the test of time is that people want to deal with people and brands they trust. They want reliability and clarity around the rules and regulations, and they want to feel that their travel booking matters and that there is a high level of care about their wellbeing.” 

She adds: “What will never change is people want to explore. They want to feel the excitement of travel and they want to create memorable travel experiences and feel the joy of meeting people face to face.” 

We wondered what lessons Clementino learned from working at WestJet, that she’s carried through to this next phase in her career? 

“I loved my time at WestJet,” says Clementino. “The role was diverse and the span of responsibility significant. 

Three of the greatest lessons she learned during her time with WestJet, she says, “which drove our team’s success,” were: 

“Listen and learn. Truly understand the agents and agencies perspectives and viewpoints.”

“Deliver what you promised, and do not promise something you can not deliver.”

“Surround yourself with talented, passionate, driven team members.”

 We also asked Clementino if she had any message for agents and the travel industry during this extremely challenging time, more than 16 months into the pandemic. 

 “I have the highest respect for travel agents, and the travel trade,” she said. “My message to them is to remain resilient, continue to educate yourself, believe in your value and stand up for what you need.”

And one more: “Thank you for all you do in supporting the travel economy and contributing to the success of the recovery.”