5th Apr 2024
Meet the Member – Katharine Totoni, Travel Counsellors
‘Meet The Member’ is our blog series where we get to know the members of our business club a little better. In this post, we catch up with Katharine Totoni, Travel Counsellors
Name, business name – Katharine Totoni Travel Counsellors
Tell us about your business, the inspiration behind it and when you launched it? I’m a travel agent and a tour operator and proud to be working in partnership with Travel Counsellors who is a multi-award winning, leading Travel Business here in the UK. I launched my travel business in April 2020 just as we entered lockdown which might sound like a crazy thing to do when nobody was travelling and the future of travel was so unpredictable. You could say I took a big risk but I knew that travel would bounce back eventually and when it did the appetite for holidays and travel would be huge. And it was!My passion for travel started when I was very young, both my parents were involved in the travel industry for most of their working lives. I definitely grew up with the travel bug and dreamt of working in the travel business too. I knew that one day I wanted to work for an airline and that was my dream and when I was 19 years old I joined BA where I enjoyed 23 fabulous years following a career that took me to all four corners of the world.
Best piece of advice you were given at the start of your business journey? Surround yourself with the right people and be clear on who your ideal customer is.
What has been your biggest lesson/ challenge faced so far and how did you overcome it? Starting a business when there was zero demand for your product or services was a massive challenge. I spent the first couple of years building the foundations of my business, heavily investing in building good relationships, networking, training and marketing which has paid off.
My business is going from strength to strength and I now have a large client base and a busy business booking holidays all around the world for a whole range of clients, many of whom are referrals and repeat clients.
What is your number 1 business tip for success? Make plans and learn from your mistakes.
What are the big business goals for 2024? Launch my business travel offering and onboard my first corporate client
How can the GGC Business membership help? I learnt a lot from my Dad about business and how to look after others in business too. It just takes that one person to give you a leg up and introduce you to that one client, business partner, supplier, collaborator or whatever it is to help you be successful. Being part of a business membership like GGC for me is about supporting each other to do well and looking out for opportunities to help each other be successful.
What’s the dream? It would be amazing to be able to work six months here and six months abroad booking holidays for my clients from anywhere in the world as I enjoy my own travels.
Fave mantra to get you buzzed up for business? When there’s a will there’s a way
Shout out to another local business you admire – Well, I’m going to be a bit biased and say my husband’s dog food business McDug Nutrition. My husband has built the business around his passion for feeding dogs the good food they deserve and his values for the ethical sourcing of healthy ingredients that support UK farms and fisheries.
Find out more here
