TORONTO — From paper tickets and telephone reservations to smartphones and artificial intelligence, YYZ Travel Group has seen the travel industry transformed during its four decades in business.
The independent Canadian travel agency is celebrating its 40th anniversary on Aug. 19, marking four decades since it got its start in Toronto.
What began as a two-person operation has grown into a team of nearly 100 travel advisors and support professionals, collectively speaking more than 25 languages. Many team members have been with the agency for between 15 and 38 years.
“Technology has transformed our industry, and we have transformed with it,” said Alexandra Pelts, President of YYZ Travel Group. “But technology cannot replace judgment, empathy or trust. Travel is personal. When plans change or a client is somewhere in the world and needs help, they want someone who knows them and is there for them.”
YYZ Travel Group is led by Pelts as well as business partners Vicky Zaltsman, Executive President and Inna Zelener, Executive Vice President.
“Our success has always been built on partnership – with our people, our clients and our suppliers,” said Zaltsman. “When people choose to build their careers with you for 15, 20, 30 and even 38 years, that creates a depth of knowledge, trust and shared experience that simply cannot be replicated overnight.”
FOUR DECADES OF CHANGE
Over the past 40 years, YYZ Travel Group has navigated major disruptions including 9/11, SARS, the COVID-19 pandemic, global instability, extreme weather and recurring airline disruptions. The agency has also evolved as the business shifted to online booking, mobile technology and AI.
Today, YYZ Travel Group offers corporate and leisure travel, cruises, groups and special-interest travel, from individual trips to complex international programs involving hundreds of travellers.
The agency is a longstanding member of Virtuoso and has achieved Platinum status in Air Canada’s Circle of Excellence program.
HUMAN EXPERTISE
YYZ Travel Group says it is embracing AI as a tool to help advisors work faster and serve clients more efficiently, while maintaining that professional judgment remains essential.
While technology can quickly produce hotel options and itineraries, the agency sees the advisor’s role as identifying the right choices for individual travellers and providing support when plans go awry.
“Our role has evolved enormously, but our responsibility hasn’t,” said Zelener. “We need to understand why our clients are travelling, anticipate what they may need and be there when circumstances change. Sometimes the true value of a travel professional becomes most apparent when the unexpected happens.”
CELEBRATING THE MILESTONE
The YYZ Travel Group team will mark the anniversary with a luncheon on Aug. 19. Celebrations will continue this fall, when approximately 50 team members are expected to travel together to Cancun, Mexico.
“Forty years represents much more than a business milestone,” said Pelts. “It represents the people who built their careers with us, the clients who placed their trust in us and the partners around the world who stood beside us. Technology and the world will keep changing and our job is to evolve with it without losing the human connection that brought us here.”
Lead image caption: YYZ Travel Group Leadership VickyZaltsman, Inna Zelener and Alexandra Pelts
