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Episode Description
“When Wendy Haines was handed her redundancy after 20 years in a job, she didn’t hesitate; She took the cheque, ran, and built something entirely her own.
What followed was over a decade of grinding, networking, working behind a pub bar just to meet locals, and slowly building a client base that now books holidays two and three years in advance.
Today Wendy runs an award-winning independent travel agency, holds the title of top agent for Riviera Travel across the UK and Ireland, and has created one of the most talked about solo travel communities for women in the country,
Wendy’s Wanderers, with over 1,200 members and trips running back to back across the globe.
In this episode, Wendy shares:
- Why she took redundancy and never looked back after two decades on the high street
- How she chose which village to move to specifically because of how it would grow her business
- The origin of Wendy’s Wanderers and why it accidentally became a national movement
- What the current travel market really looks like and how she is holding her own while others are down 20%
- Why her clients book years in advance and what that says about the value of trust
- Where she sees AI fitting into the business and what she still needs to figure out
This is a conversation about backing yourself when the paycheque disappears, building a business on reputation rather than budget, and why the travel agent is far from dead.
If you are building a service business on loyalty and word of mouth, or simply love the idea of adventure without the hassle, this one is for you.”
Thank you to The Growth Diary for a fun chat! It’s also available on Apple Podcast and Youtube
