TORONTO — From $540 million in 2025, to a projected $610 million in 2026, The Travel Agent Next Door’s Flemming Friisdahl said the host agency could hit close to $700 million in sales for 2027.
Year-to-date 2026 sales are up 13-15%, Friisdahl told Travelweek at last night’s VIP Supplier event, an annual fixture on the calendar for TTAND’s tight-knit group of supplier partners.
“Combined with Travel Counsellors, next year we’ll be close to $3 billion at the end of the year,” said Friisdahl. “So it’s a lot of sales, right? We’re very fortunate that way, and what we really focus on is growing the sales.”
“YOU CAN’T FIGHT ON SERVICE AND YOU CAN’T FIGHT ON TOOLS”
TTAND’s equity partnership with the UK’s Travel Counsellors came into play just over a year ago. Travel Counsellors’ CEO, Steve Byrne, was at the event in spirit, sending a video message.
“A lot of people have asked me what has changed since Travel Counsellors. Only good things,” said Friisdahl. The organizations run very differently: Travel Counsellors is a franchise operation, unlike TTAND, and has its own staff-to-agent ratio. “The reality is that they are much higher touch, but it’s also a 60/40 split. They retain 40%, and the agents retain 60%. So that’s different. It’s just not the same model,” said Friisdahl.
Tech on the other hand is very much a shared focus. Travel Counsellors’ Phenix is an ideal dynamic booking engine that can combine hotel, car and air, said Friisdahl. “We now have contracts for our air portion for tour nets, which no other host agency has, that I’m aware of. That includes KLM, Lufthansa, Virgin, Air Canada, Porter, Transat and Delta. We’re super excited about these agreements and getting them out there, and starting to combine air with our hotel program to do something that’s different from what other companies do.”
Nicole Vuong and Tanya Element
He said TTAND’s new back-end system, currently in the works, will be an “A-to-Z finished product. It’s going to allow you to do something that no one else does in the Canadian market. You can always fight on commission splits, but you can’t fight on service. You can’t fight on tools.”
While TTAND collaborates with Travel Counsellors on tech, “we still have our own IT department. It hasn’t merged, and it never will be as long as I’m here, because I want to make sure we stay focused on what we need for our travel partners and supplier partners,” he said.
Last night’s event saw a record turnout, with about 100 supplier reps in attendance. Since its early days in 2014, TTAND has made no apologies for its well-curated list of supplier partners, with an eye to ‘less is more.’
“I’ve always believed that fewer suppliers mean more focus, more relationships, more support when we screw up and more support when you need help,” said Friisdahl.
NEW ENTRANTS
By the numbers, TTAND now has 1,853 advisors. Staff count is 82 full-time employees, with close to 50 in Canada and 33 in India.
TTAND’s VP, New Talent Development, Rhonda Stanley said TTAND’s enrolment in 2026 is on par with 2025. “We’re not about the quantity of agents we bring in. We’re all about the quality,” she said. “Our recruitment process is rigorous. We get calls all the time from people saying they already know we’re the company they want to go with, because many of our supplier partners and agent partners recommend us. But we still want to make sure they’re the right fit for us and the industry.”
Stanley said it’s never been a better time for new entrants to the industry. “This is the future of the travel industry. We need new blood in this industry. And he travel industry for independent travel consultants is stronger than it has ever been.”
The success from some of those new entrants is “mind-boggling,” she said.
“We had an RCMP officer call me and say, ‘I’m five years from retirement. This is part of my succession plan. I want to be in the travel industry.’ He retired early, after three years. He has an incredibly successful business. I’m blown away, and he’s blown away. We also have an oil and gas worker in Alberta, and in just the last two months, he’s invoiced over half a million dollars in sales while working full-time. This year, he’s on track to do over $1 million in sales, plus working in the oil and gas industry. We’ll have eight agents just this year alone who will have invoiced between $1 million and $3 million. And these are new entrants.”
Stanley said many new-to-industry advisors start with the Caribbean “but know they want to move into cruises. Others want to focus on European guided coach tours. They start with a particular area and branch out very quickly. They know what they’re passionate about. They’re not coming in wanting to be a jack of all trades.”
2,150 BY END OF 2027
TTAND’s COO, Jeff Element, said TTAND’s 1,853 advisors include 910 primary agents and 943 associate agents. He doubled-down on quality, not quantity. “This isn’t about trying to add 1,000 agents every year,” said Element. “That’s not our goal. It’s about good-quality agents.”
Antje Splettstoesser and Rebecca Mueller
Expect about 2,150 TTAND advisors by year-end 2027, he added.
With FAMs plus the cross-Canada roadshow visiting 17 cities in 2026 and the upcoming 2027 Conference, it’s busy times for the host agency. Next year’s conference is April 9 – 16 at Hyatt Vivid Punta Cana, and it’s already sold out. “I hope you have FOMO so that you get your name on the list for 2028 as soon as it comes out,” Element joked to the suppliers.
MORE LEAD GENERATION
Suppliers at last night’s event also heard about TTAND’s lead generation initiatives with NextTrip and JOURNY, the online streaming platform with 1.3 million viewers in Canada and available on Amazon Prime, Apple TV, Google Play and Roku.
TTAND is also creating social media videos to support supplier offers. “There’ll be a nominal fee … a reasonable price so we can cover our costs, and let’s both make money when we sell your product,” said Friisdahl. TTAND will post the supplier offer on behalf of the agent, starting with Facebook and Instagram. “When someone clicks on the offer, it’s going to take them back to that agent’s website. Now they’re in their agent’s environment. They can see other offers, and it may lead them to other products.”
TTAND advisors will also be getting their own apps. The apps will read supplier documents and create a customized itinerary for clients. The app will be branded to the individual advisor when the client logs in.
LUXE MASTERMIND
Meanwhile TTAND’s ‘LUXE Mastermind’ program, offering full-day immersion programs focused on generating more high-end business for advisors, is in full swing.
Christine Ufniak, TTAND’s Director of Marketing, said many advisors who have embraced the luxury travel niche have seen sales skyrocket. “At our roadshow last month, one advisor stood up and said, “Just this week I had $250,000 in bookings.” That’s $250,000 in one week. We’re investing in educating our advisors and helping them grow their luxury business.”
“MORE COMMISSION ON THE TRIP”
Friisdahl told Travelweek that TTAND advisors are doing well navigating the unpredictabilities of 2026. Big price tag once-in-a-lifetime trips are providing a boost for many. “The yields are higher with bucket list vacations. They’re making more commission on the trip.”
And while it remains to be seen what happens with U.S. bookings post-midterms, Europe is still booming, and more and more in the off-season, he added.
