TORONTO — The Travel Agent Next Door’s 10th anniversary celebrations kicked off yesterday, celebrating a decade of success as a host agency.

During a media luncheon, Flemming Friisdahl, TTAND’s CEO and founder, shared highlights from the past decade – and plans for the next.

“The first 10 years were great,” he said. “I think the next 10 years are going to be so amazing in the industry. And we’re going to bring some really, really cool programs that no one else has.”

TTAND is aiming for what Friisdahl calls “the power of one.”

“I want an agent to be able to have a client’s first name, their email, and everything else can be automated for them to be able to book the file,” he said. “That’s what we’re working towards.”

In the evening, TTAND hosted a virtual anniversary celebration for agents with surprise guests, including Blue Rodeo’s Jim Cuddy and Canadian comedian Shaun Majumder.

Celebrations will continue throughout the year and include TTAND’s upcoming annual conference, which will take place in Jordan this June (in partnership with G Adventures, Jordan Tourism and Royal Jordanian Airlines).

It’s a big year for TTAND for other reasons, too. “This year, we’re on par to do half a billion dollars [in sales],” said Friisdahl. “And all that commission is going to go directly to the agents.”

Another big change will be the departure of Penny Martin, VP Agent Experience. Martin has worked alongside Friisdahl since TTAND’s inception, helping to build the host agency from the ground up. She’ll be retiring at the end of July, but said she may still stay involved in the travel industry in some capacity.

Jim Element, former president of The Travel Corporation (TTC), has taken on the role of Senior VP Operations, while Chris Senior has joined as CFO. Aside from building up its senior leadership team, TTAND is also focused on building an internal lead generation program that will make it easier for agents to prospect.

The host agency started out in 2014 with just three staff members and 60 agents. Today, it’s grown to 63 staff members (including 26 in India) and 1,250 agents. This year, TTAND expects to boost its numbers to 1,400+ agent partners.

TTAND’s 10th anniversary celebrations will run all year long.

Main Photo: At TTAND’s 10th anniversary media luncheon are (left to right) Christine Ufniak, Director of Marketing; Penny Martin, VP Agent Experience; Nicola Gowe, Director of Finance; Chris Senior, CFO; Rhonda Stanley, VP New Agent Development; Flemming Friisdahl, founder and CEO; Jeff Element, Senior VP Operations