With 40 years of travel industry experience amassed, David Brandon, the Founder and Managing Director of Savenio, remains baffled some travel advisors continue to avoid selling cruising.

ID Travel Group, a member of the Virtuoso luxury travel network, has appointed its first Australian-based Associate Director for Asia Pacific, LATTE can reveal.

Savenio has made further tweaks to its recently realigned commission models in a bid to encourage some of the thousands of undecided travel advisors back into the industry.

Luxury specialty agency, Savenio, has confirmed it will join the Magellan Travel network effective 1 October 2021.

Independent luxury agency network Savenio, has announced a restructure of its independent contractor model to better reflect the marketplace and the future of the travel industry post COVID. In realigning the Savenio model, network members will now be able to choose an affiliation option that best suits their business – either an 85, 95 or 100% commission on their work.

LATTE sought feedback from a small cross-section of Virtuoso-affiliated travel agencies to gauge their views on the arrangement, and what products and destinations they foresee will prove popular for discerning travellers.

Savenio has created its first advisory board of five network Affiliates who will support the growth of the brand as it navigates the new post-COVID travel landscape. Comprised of four existing Savenio members, the group share 95 years of travel industry experience and will focus on key projects to elevate how the network works together and with its clients.

This year’s Savenio Symposium will welcome a number of new affiliates to the network as the team gathers in Brisbane this weekend and celebrates a year of success.

Savenio has signed its first affiliate in Western Australia, with Shelley Brice joining the team as the group’s maiden associate in Perth. Brice was previously the Manager at Brice and Turner Travel Associates, a role she held for 5.5 years.

The uncertainty of whether clients will follow a travel advisor across from a traditional agency to a smaller, niche organisation has been pinpointed as one of the primary concerns weighing on the minds of luxury travel advisors.

Four Savenio advisors have been recognised for their outstanding service to the industry with three nominated for awards from global luxury network Virtuoso, and one for Australia’s National Travel Industry Awards (NTIA).

Savenio luxury travel network has gained global recognition, receiving the ‘Top year-over-year percentage growth’ award during the opening ceremony of Virtuoso Travel Week in Las Vegas overnight.