Earlier today, the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) announced the nominees for the two top award categories: the Extra Mile Award and the Entrepreneur of the Year Award. The winners of each award category will be announced at the ASTA Global Convention (AGC)—hosted this year in San Diego, California from August 27 to August 29.
Extra Mile Award (Sponsored by Enterprise):
The Extra Mile Award is given to the travel agent who in the past year has “gone the extra mile” in providing exceptional service to clients in new and creative ways. Stories were submitted from around the world from agents who self-nominated and agents who nominated their coworkers. After considering the many submissions, the committee arrived at three finalists:
- Lisa Fitzgerald, Fitzgerald Travel
- Tammy Levent, Elite Travel Management Group, Inc.
- Mindy Walts, Empress Travel & Cruises
Entrepreneur of the Year Award (Sponsored by the Dan and Gloria Bohan Foundation):
Established by the Dan and Gloria Bohan Foundation in order to encourage entrepreneurship among travel agents, this reward recognizes innovators in the travel and hospitality industry who have established their own business or have undertaken major initiatives in existing organizations. The organization or individual that best exemplifies this entrepreneurial spirit receives the award and a $10,000 cash prize.
The three finalists will appear on stage at the ASTA Global Convention later this month to compete in a “Shark Tank”-style competition. Each finalist will deliver a five minute pitch to a panel of travel experts and industry veteran judges, who will each cast one vote towards deciding the winner. The live audience, acting as a “super judge” will also cast one vote. The three finalists for this award are:
- David Chait, Travefy
- Nico and Elkie Nicholas, RentalsCombined.net
- Jacob Marek, IntroverTravels
Visit www.asta.org/awards for more information on past winners, and www.astaglobalconvention.org for more information on the ASTA Global Convention.
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