TORONTO — Every once in a while, some well-timed advice from your mom can change your life.
That was certainly the case for Angela Landry.
Now a successful senior travel consultant with TPI, part of Trevello Travel Group, Landry almost didn’t get into the travel industry at all.
In fact, if it hadn’t been for a fortuitous conversation with her mother, Landry might still be a roadie with a band.
As Landry tells Travelweek, “I was never an A-student, I didn’t like school and never saw myself going to university. So once I graduated high school I went on the road with a rock band (it’s true! LOL). I lugged their gear from town to town, cleaned up after everyone, ate terribly and hardly slept.”
Landry says that “after a year of that craziness”, she went back home and had a heart-to-heart with her mom. “As she listened to the stories of my adventure and how it was not the easiest job to do, she calmly said, ‘Well, it sounds like you like the travelling aspect and seeing different places’. And I replied yes, I really enjoyed that part. And she again calmly said, ‘Why not be a travel agent, I see a course starting here next week.’ I agreed and here we are 30 years later!”
Landry specializes in corporate travel, with pre-pandemic annual corporate sales at her Nova Scotia-based agency topping $2 million.
As part of Travelweek’s interview series with travel industry professionals, running all through 2023 as part of Travelweek’s 50th anniversary celebrations, Landry shared her industry memories and experiences.
While the post-pandemic ramp-up in travel and bookings is much welcome, Landry says “the struggle is real” when it comes to new realities: “With the rising costs of travel and lack of airline staff, [working in] travel has been a challenge. Cancelled and delayed flights on a daily basis mean increased customer service complaints. Airlines will re-book people 24 hours later than originally reserved without confirmation from the travellers. This adds more work on the travel agent’s side, with finding flights, re-issuing tickets, applying for seat fee refunds … the list goes on.”
Since the COVID years more people have left the travel industry, she adds, and with that comes more bookings for those still in the industry. “I am busier now than I ever have been. February 2023 was my biggest month in 30 years of being in the travel business.”
Landry also shared with Travelweek the highlight of her travel career.
“In January 2023 I was asked to join Condé Nast for the grand reveal of Atlantis The Royal in Dubai,” she said. “I experienced business class on Air Canada from Canada to Dubai. What a treat! I stayed on site at the hotel for three weeks. My part in this project was to assist the celebrities coming in from all over the world with their travel arrangements. The highlight was seeing Beyonce and her team at the hotel getting ready for her grand debut. The hotel was amazing and the red carpet was something I had never seen in person.”
Atlantis The Royal in Dubai
Travelweek’s 50th anniversary celebrations continue throughout 2023 with travel industry interviews and memories. Plus, try your luck with our contest, ‘It Happened This Week’, featuring a new headline (and a new chance to win!) every week from Travelweek’s 50 years of travel industry news coverage.
