Travel Counsellors is to expand its own in-house luxury tour operation Suitcase.
The company launched Suitcase in 2007 and now has direct contracts with more than 700 four- and five-star hotels worldwide.
It plans to expand the range of product to include more three- and four-star properties and short-haul and city-break destinations.
Travel Counsellors is sending its home-based agents surveys, asking them to highlight requested product and rate content.
The average booking for a tailor-made package is £5,500, and agents have the opportunity to earn a minimum of 15% commission.
Suitcase accounted for £20 million in sales in the 12 months to the end of October last year, up from £3 million in 2007. Flights through Suitcase account for £13 million in sales so far this year, and packages £3 million.
Travel Counsellors managing director Steve Byrne said: “We introduced Suitcase so that our agents would have even more choice and could use an operator where they have had direct control of the product content. Plus, in today’s marketplace it is important our agents can use operators they know and trust.”
He said a number of Travel Counsellors had joined the company because they didn’t want to be told what product to sell and the Suitcase system gives the agent the flexibility to do this.