How To Become an Independent Travel Agent

Today, there are a plethora of options for anyone looking into how to become an independent travel agent. These options span so many important choices, however, that they can become a bit of a blur.

It may feel overwhelming at first, with so many different areas contributing to your business. In saying that, a lot of these areas can fall under one larger category that could simplify your decisions significantly.

Plus, there is no better time to prioritise independence than now. In the UK travel industry, we are better equipped than ever to support independent businesses. The growth of unique businesses that put the traveller above all else has also provided a fantastic environment for independence to thrive.

Regardless of how you approach becoming an independent travel agent, it is important to keep in mind that you are running a unique agent and you will know best what that business needs.

Whether you’re starting out completely fresh, you’ve been working in travel for a long time, or your travel agency simply isn’t independent at the moment and you’re ready to make that step, there are a few key elements in how to become an independent travel agent that you should prioritise.

What Does It Mean to Be Independent in Travel?

Fortunately, when you’re first looking for independence as a travel agent, the important question to answer is just one: do you want to collate all the tools you need yourself, or do you want to find a consortium or similar solution that provides them without taking your independence?

While doing this all yourself could be incredibly daunting for many, if you are experienced in business or independent travel services, this may be the option you are the most comfortable and knowledgeable on. For may, alternatively, the peace of mind that a consortium brings is unbeatable, to the point that many businesses will give up modicums of their freedom for that peace of mind.

This is not just simply because it takes some stress off their minds, but for many the idea of being an independent travel agent is a far-off dream. Complete freedom to run your business sounds brilliant, but when you consider it in practice, many might shy away from what seems like a lot of complicated work that they cannot afford to mess up.

In saying that, you don’t need to give up a single ounce of your freedom as a independent travel business owner to benefit from the support of a consortium.

We are by no means the only option in this situation, but we at PTS do believe above all else in our members’ freedom and independence, rather than the restrictions that many consortia include.

This means members keep 100% of their commission, members can take advantage of our list of 200+ contracted suppliers, but they can also use whatever suppliers they choose for their business, members can use our software however suits them best (whether it’s every last piece of it, or just the basics), members only have to give us 3 months notice if they decide we’re not the right fit for them, and members can adapt our support to their business. If a PTS member just wants the competitive card acquiry prices, we can be hands off, alternatively if a member wants the extra help of our expert team, we’re here.

Independence isn’t always about doing things without help, it is about taking ownership of your travel business and the decisions only you can make. That is why we provide the support that we do. At PTS, businesses can access the support, community, and tools that they need, without essentially giving up those important decisions that make their business…their business.

Different Types of Travel Businesses

If you are already running your business and are only looking to become independent, you already have an idea of what separates different businesses. If not, finding the right classification can provide some clarity as you go forward.

While a lot of travel businesses in travel are hybrid now, there is still a distinction between a travel agent and a tour operator. If you are only looking to be independent as a travel agent, then ensuring you have a well-established network of travel suppliers and tour operators around you is important before you become independent.

This is because a travel agent is only selling the holidays directly to the consumer. Most travel agents will take package holidays that have already been put together by a tour operator and sell this to the traveller.

On the flip side, if you are looking to be an independent tour operator, you will likely not be selling to the traveller, but to travel agents. This means that your suppliers are probably your greatest asset.

So, now that you understand what independence means in a general sense, what actually changes for you when you become an independent travel agent?

Control Your Income Potential

When you move away from more restrictive consortia, the first thing that will change is your income. This is because most consortia will take a percentage of your commission. For example, some could take around 40% of your commission on each booking. When you become independent, you are immediately in control of 100% of that profit, without someone else taking a portion of it away.

This is the same with a support system like PTS. Because we don’t take a portion of your commission, you then have far more freedom to put your profit where it will be the most beneficial to your travel agent business.

Direct Relationships With Clients and Suppliers

When you move over to independence, your relationships will change drastically. With some consortia, you may not even be allowed direct contact with a supplier that you are trading with. With many, you will be restricted to a set list of contracted suppliers with that consortium.

This may not seem like a huge change when you become independent, but when you have control over which suppliers you use and how you actually build that relationship, you have so much more ability to craft your holidays and your travellers’ experiences exactly how you want them.

That is the same for a member of PTS. You can certainly take advantage of the suppliers we have contracts with, but you also have the freedom to use any supplier you want and build your relationships your way.

Brand Freedom

A huge aspect of independence that many travel agents are aiming for, is the freedom to brand their business. If you have started out as a homeworker, for example, then you will have been working under a larger brand already, and therefore have no control over the way your work is presented.

As an independent, you can present your business however you want. This includes how and where you present yourself, whether you want a shop, or you want to work entirely through social media. You have complete say over the voice of your business, which can have a huge affect on if your holidays actually reach the travellers that will enjoy them the most.

This also applies to all PTS members, who have complete control over their branding and can even customise elements of the system such as the itinerary and automated emails to fit their brand.

Lower Start-Up Costs

Of course, saving money is a huge advantage to going independent. With a consortium, you may be paying for marketing, for example, and yet find that you actually want to do your marketing yourself. The difference between paying a consortium to market for you, and doing it all yourself is huge. If you are confident in doing that aspect yourself, that is a large chunk of money that could be going towards an area where you need more help.

This is exactly why we only take transaction fees on bookings at PTS, we know that for every single business there are completely different priorities, and our members should be free to put their money where it’s needed the most.

Steps to Setting Up as an Independent Travel Agent

When it comes to actually putting this into action, there isn’t one set way for every travel agent or travel business to go independent. This can depend on where in your journey you are, the type of business you want to run, the type of holidays you want to sell, and more.

In saying that, here are a few important steps in the journey that you’ll want to take into consideration.

Business Plan

This may seem obvious, but before you do anything else, you need to have a business plan. This includes what you want to sell, how you want to sell it, how you want to present your business, what scale you want to sell these holidays on, and beyond.

Before you pay for anything, you need to know as much as you can about exactly what business you are building. If it turns out you want to work entirely from home, you don’t want to only realise that after hiring an office or shop space. Making an in-depth plan beforehand can save you a lot of stress and money in the long run.

Decide What Model is Best For You

This will be the next step after planning your business. Do you want external support, or do you want to be in control of everything? If you know there are some aspects of the business that you just don’t want to deal with (such as admin), then you’re probably going to want to look into the support of a host agency.

Equally, if you want to do everything yourself, but maybe you want help optimising your work, you might consider a support solution like PTS. This means you won’t have to deal with the hassle of finding the right tools to support your business (such as card payment services, financial protection, and currency hedging), but you will be completely in control of using them.

Register Your Business and Check Legal Requirements

This is a more tedious part of the journey, and may not apply to you if you’re not starting the business from scratch. If you’re going to be independent, it is more important than ever to ensure you are up to date on the legal requirements that apply to you.

This means that you need to understand what the Package Travel Regulations will stop you doing, and if your terms and conditions are going to clash with these. In this situation, the PTRs will always take priority over your business terms, so making sure these don’t clash could save you a lot of time and money if anything does go wrong with a booking.

Fortunately, even if you are independent, you don’t have to face this aspect alone. With a system like PTS, we have experts on our team there to ensure that your business is compliant with the regulations and answer any questions you may have if you’re planning on making any changes.

Ensure Financial Protection is in Place

A certain level of financial protection is required by law under the Package Travel Regulations. However, this isn’t the only reason that this is such a big step in your journey.

Having financial protection that you are confident in can make a huge difference for you and your customers. If something happens that means a lot of travellers need to cancel, this can make or break your business. We are also living in a travel industry now where travellers are more aware of financial protection, so ensuring you trust your protection can ensure they trust it too.

Ultimately, how you want to protect your business is entirely up to what works best for you, but it is vital that you are confident in your choice, because it could cause you a lot of extra stress down the line if you aren’t sure your business is secure.

This is why financial protection has been at the core of PTS’s support for so many years. Before a travel business can start picking destinations and card payment plans, it is important that a sturdy foundation is in place to build everything on top of. Our travel trust account is run to be that foundation. With daily reconciliation, independent trustees, and protection throughout the whole journey, the PTS trust account provides exactly what it says on the tin, trust.

If you’d like to discuss this further, please get in contact with one of Protected Trust Services’ (PTS) lovely staff members by calling 0207 190 9988. Or, you can visit our member support and travel trust account pages to learn more about how we protect you.