Luxury Travel Advisor - August 2008 - (Page 62)

COVER STORY feel to the individual trip. That’s what we do. We piece the hotel, we piece the driver, we piece the restaurant, we piece the sightseeing activities and so on.” Fabulous shopping tips also find their way into the extensively detailed itineraries the agency provides to its clients. Nancy recently advised a client about where she could find “knock-off ” Hermès wallets for $80 in a certain bazaar in Istanbul. Her client, whom she was certain never buys knock-offs, “went out of her mind buying them, she thought it was the greatest tip she ever got.” The wealth of knowledge that the Strongs bring to the table is culled from their many experiences on the road, which enables them to give their clients insider tips. “We give them the names of certain people. For example, at a restaurant, we’ll say, ‘Please ask for so and so and mention my name,’” says Nancy, who has already traveled a great deal this year, venturing out to Punta Mita and San Miguel Allende, Mexico, Turkey, Greece, London, Paris, Venice, Florence, Rome and Sardinia. She emphasizes, however, that she won’t go somewhere unless she is going to truly learn about or see something that will assist her in selling. “I like to be with people who understand what we’re looking at, particularly in terms of luxury,” she says. Because she personally knows so many suppliers around the globe, Nancy is known as the “Texas Hammer” around the office. “If someone here is at their desk and they’re somewhat frustrated because they can’t clear space, they’ll say, ‘Nancy, please call whoever you know and see if you can make something happen.’ I do have amazing relationships around the world and I have such good friends, so I feel very fortunate.” Jim, too, travels a great deal, checking out new properties and ensuring that the accommodations he is booking for his clients will be on par with their expectations, or to simply clear space for them. “I’ve flown all over the world to look at villas, to make certain the villas will work for our customers and to get that villa space when they wouldn’t give it to me. I’ve done it frequently,” he says. He is also on Virtuoso’s Hotels Committee and travels on behalf of JIM STRONG FOLLOWED in his parents’ footsteps; he is currently the president of Strong Travel Services. LUXURY CLIENTS: It’s not safe to assume Jim Strong says that it’s important to propose all sorts of travel to your clients, because you never know what might be their secret, hidden dream. “You could have a 75-year-old client who has been around the world, and you wouldn’t think that they would want to go river rafting in Utah. But you know what? Maybe they’ve been waiting all their life to go do that. So sending those oddball ideas to clients sometimes sparks an interest, and what you think that client has absolutely no interest in is sometimes what hits the nail right on the head. Don’t ever assume.” At the same time, not all luxury clients are alike, he adds. “We could sit here and say, ‘Oh, we have these fabulous clients and they’re all millionaires and they all stay in suites.’ Not everybody wants a suite, however, so it’s up to us to personalize what the customer wants. You might have a husband and wife that wants a two-bedroom suite or you might have a large family that wants to get crammed into two connecting rooms. My planning is all geared toward how they want things delivered to them.” the Dallas market. Nancy stresses that the name of the agency is Strong Travel Services and because it caters to such an elite clientele, it’s necessary to go above and beyond what’s expected. “We are in the service business. Since I opened the doors, I’ve always said you have to have an understanding of service,” she says. “You don’t leave at 5 p.m. if someone needs something. You’re there to take care of the client.” “Many of our clients own their own jets and do a great deal of multi-generational family travel,” says Jim Strong. “Many are cultural travelers. We have a lot of art collectors who go on buying trips, whether it’s to Art Basel in Switzerland or Miami or to the Venice Biennale. We also have a lot of people who are just looking for a quick getaway. We do large groups of friends. Nancy and I really don’t do group travel, but we’ll do 12 couples at a time. We’ve just done a charter of the Eclipse down to the Galapagos for a family who’s inviting other families to join them. “We handcraft our trips,” he continues. “We tailor-make them to the individual so that they have a unique texture and a unique 62 LUXURY TRAVEL ADVISOR | August 2008

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Luxury Travel Advisor - August 2008

Luxury Travel Advisor - August 2008 Contents Publisher's Letter Editor's Letter Maui Dubai Cape Town The Capella Resort and Spa, at Pedregal Cabo San Lucas Ritz-Carlton Cancun Presidential Suites The Palazzo, Las Vegas The Water Club Arrabelle at Vail Square Ferntree The Spa at Half Moon Fall Foliage Cruises New England Strong Travel On the Horizon: Luxury Travel Expo The Pulse Traveling Shopper Leaders Speak Sightings Source List

Luxury Travel Advisor - August 2008

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