TORONTO — Nexion is bringing its Nexion on the Road regionals almost right to Canada’s doorstep with one-third of the scheduled full-day events taking place near major Canadian markets, says Nexion Canada President, Mike Foster.

Canadian agents have always been welcome at all Nexion events, but this is the first time an event is being held in cities so close to the Canadian border. “The Canadian market is very important to Nexion,” said Foster.

Created as a targeted and immersive experience, the Nexion on the Road events kick off in April and highlight different supplier partners, plus there’s a full day of targeted education. In select cities, Nexion agents will participate in day-two fams to experience the destination or supplier partner product. The six cities selected for the Nexion on the Road events include Washington, D.C. (April 12 – 13); Fort Lauderdale (April 15 – 16); Detroit (May 10); Seattle (May 12 – 13); Newark, NJ (Oct. 19 – 20) and Boston (Oct. 27 – 28). The Detroit and Seattle events are in collaboration with Nexion Canada.

Nexion President Jackie Friedman said the Nexion on the Road series continues and expands upon the successful NEX-Door events offered last year. For 2016 Nexion made sure to offer Nexion agents more experiential opportunities. “Developing these multi-day, educational sessions for Nexion agents allows us to tailor the events to different business specializations,” said Friedman. “Where each of last year’s NEX-Door events were intended for agents based in the host cities, this year’s multi-day Nexion on the Road events have been designed so that our member travel agents in the U.S. and Canada can select the one they believe will be most beneficial to their business.”

What’s the big advantage for Canadian agents making the trek across the border to attend a Nexion on the Road event? “In a word, networking,” said Foster. “Nexion agents from across Canada and the U.S. will have great networking opportunities with their colleagues, as well as staff from Nexion, Nexion Canada and the many supplier partners who will be on hand.”

Rather than ebbing away, there’s a resurgence of interest in in-person networking/learning events like Nexion on the Road. Participation numbers are trending up, said Foster. “Our agents have a huge appetite for in-person opportunities to learn and network. For many events, we’re seeing an uptick in registration. CoNexion 2016 – our annual conference – has already set a record for advanced registrations over previous years. We also encourage networking and learning through our re-launched NexionTown, which is our members only social network that connects our more than 3,600 agents from across North America. Interestingly we are seeing agents even more interested in in-person events after connecting online.”

January was a “fantastic month” for Nexion Canada and its agents, with both membership and bookings on the rise, said Foster. “Our goal is to manage our growth. As we bring on new agents, we can easily assimilate them into the Nexion Canada family while providing them with the attention and assistance that they need to get their business started on the right path toward growth and success.”