This week marks 10 years since the Consort Travel Group in Northern Ireland joined The Advantage Travel Partnership, and both groups have been reflecting on the benefits the partnership has brought in supporting independent travel agents in Northern Ireland.

The Consort Travel Group was originally set up in 1985 by a network of 16 independent travel agencies with the sole purposes of increasing earning potential through collaborative buying power, and improving the professionalism of its members.

In 2012 the group took the decision to join with a larger consortia to support their head office functions and further enhance their commercial relationships, and so chose The Advantage Travel Partnership.

David Moon, Head of Business Development at Advantage commented, “Over the last 10 years we have forged a very strong relationship with our Consort members in Northern Ireland. Whether it be attending our regional meetings, annual conference or utilising the many products and services we offer; Consort members have truly engaged with what we do here at The Advantage Travel Partnership. Our business development team have also worked very closely to build individual relationships with each Consort member to provide a bespoke service to them. On this milestone we would like to thank our all of the Consort members for their continued support, and we look forward to working even more closely with them in the future”.  

Sandra Corkin, Managing Director of Oasis Travel in Northern Ireland added, “It has been 10 years since the partnership between the Consort Travel Group in Northern Ireland and The Advantage Travel Partnership was formed. We have been very impressed at how Advantage has supported our group, as well as each of our business individually. We have benefitted not only from market leading commercial terms with a broad range of suppliers, but also expert operational advice on all areas of our businesses, ranging from financial help to shop refurbishments. Furthermore, their marketing support has not only ensured that we keep in regular contact with our existing clients, but also provided opportunities for us to grow our business and increase sales. We have enjoyed the many networking opportunities offered by attending Advantage events and their conferences, giving us the chance to network with other members from around the UK and our preferred supplier partners. We have thoroughly enjoyed working closely with Advantage over the last decade, and we look forward to building our future with them by our side.”

As a small gesture to help celebrate the anniversary, Advantage sent all of the Consort members a bottle of champagne, and a tin of delicious chocolate truffles, with tin representing a 10th anniversary.