Luxury Travel Advisor - February 2009 - (Page 49)

Travel Network for the past 10 years cinched its status. “Without them,” Michael says, “we couldn’t do the type of advertising that allows us to reach our clients. It made it affordable to get out there and market.” Signature also allows them to build better itineraries for clients and, as a result, receive better remuneration for the services it renders. One subject that chafes many an agent is non-commission on shore excursions sold through the cruise lines. Michael’s Travel is not immune; however, it leverages Signature’s Destination Specialists to sell shore excursions, thereby receiving commissions, which can be considerable (some excursions cost hundreds of dollars per person). Money notwithstanding, it makes them look good. “We had one client who went on a cruise to St. Petersburg, Russia,” Lee says. “When he came back, he talked more about the shore excursions than the cruise. Selling these shore excursions allows us to make money we might not have.” Another innovative tack Michael’s Travel has explored is notching for its clients other non-commissionable items such as golf tee times and restaurant reservations. Commissionable, no, but “you can charge a service fee,” Lee says. Michael’s Travel has also been able to LEE’s idol is his father, who signed a five-year lease 30 years ago in a barren lot in Agoura Hills. “There was nothing here, he says. ” succeed because it’s become a pillar of the community. Its status as a member of the Agoura Hills, Westlake Village and Conejo Valley Chamber’s of Commerce puts it in good standing; Michael’s season tickets to UCLA basketball and football games also ups the agency’s presence. Location has also helped. The agency has cornered two markets, which helps grow revenue and diversify the products it sells. “Agoura Hills is family-oriented, so we gear our marketing toward family travel here,” Michael says. “Westlake Village is more high-end.” And while the economy has hit a rough patch, Michael’s Travel is poised to grow; the only problem is that it’s tough to add great agents today. “We’d like to add agents,” Michael says. “The problem is you can’t find any new agents on a sales basis. Young people are not coming into the travel-selling business. That’s a concern. They don’t think of it as a profession or as a future. People can make a lot of money if they put their mind to it.” Maybe more would if they met the Ginsburgs, who remain as close today as they were 30 years ago. The Ginsburgs take what today would be considered a rarity: annual family vacations. Michael and his wife; Lee, his wife and three kids (ages 4, 6 and 17); and Caren all usually attend. This will be the first year without Caren, who is taking a Princess cruise to Asia with friends. Maybe a smart move on her part: The Ginsburgs don’t have the best luck on vacations and are prone to injuries. The list is long: Michael’s wife fell off a plane in Tahiti and broke her shoulder when the plane door opened and she stepped off. Problem was, there was no jetway yet. Lee once had an allergic reaction that almost killed him and an Eastern Airlines flight Michael was on had to make an emergency landing when he—and they—thought he was having a heart attack. Maybe most egregious: “We “Young people are not coming into the travelselling business. That’s a concern.” —Michael Ginsburg went on a Disney Cruise and I forgot long pants,” says Lee, who had to purchase a pair of khakis so he wouldn’t be ridiculed in the dining rooms. Spending an afternoon with the family, it’s easy to see why they continue to flourish. In fact, Caren, toward the end of the day, began to rustle when it was time to pick up and chaperone Lee’s kids to karate class (she stays the whole two hours). “We are a really close family,” she says. “I mean, I live right around the corner from Lee. It’s really all in the family.” THE SUPER BOWL OF TRAVEL Michael’s Travel Centre is your runof-the-mill agency on the inside. Two rows of desks line the walls; of course, Owner Michael Ginsburg’s desk is set farthest back, a tell-tale sign of who is in charge. Lee Ginsburg’s surfboard stands upright against the wall of an inner office used for meetings. But, sometimes, you have to get out of the office. That is just what Michael’s Travel does with its annual Super Bowl of Travel, a travel show that brings together all of the agency’s main preferred suppliers in a ballroom of the Hyatt Westlake Village. This is the 17th year they’ve done the show, which took place January 25. The date is significant. “It’s the one weekend off between the NFL playoffs and the Super Bowl, says Lee, who, along with ” the rest of the Ginsburg clan, is a rabid sports fan. This is the agency’s biggest marketing ploy and a chance for its clients and other members of the community to meet and mingle with about 55 travel suppliers, who are all there pushing business through the agency. “It’s a very big success each year, says Michael. “We get ” quite a bit of business from that show. ” Advertising the show begins about three weeks prior. “We send out about 4,000 postcards to our clients letting them know, Caren Ginsburg says. They also ” place ads in the local papers and use email and the website to spread the word. www.luxuryta.com February 2009 | LUXURY TRAVEL ADVISOR 49 http://www.luxuryta.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Luxury Travel Advisor - February 2009

Luxury Travel Advisor - February 2009 Contents Publisher's Letter Editor's Letter Caribbean Mexico Prague Hotel Splendido One Aldwych Liberty Hotel Resorts Cambridge Beaches Luxury Travel Expo Michael's Travel Awards Regent The Pulse Luxury Lifestyles Local Connections Sightings Source List

Luxury Travel Advisor - February 2009

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