David Kendall, reservations agent, Holiday Autos
Education: nine GCSEs and a national diploma in leisure studies at Basingstoke College of Technology.
Training: underwent an extensive two-week training programme when he joined Holiday Autos. This provided him with a good understanding of the job’s requirements. In addition, the company carries out a programme of on-going training to suit individual needs.
First travel job: joined American Express after leaving college, as a consultant at an implant for a computer company. Started mainly doing administration work, then progressed to consulting on hotels worldwide, then on to flights.
Career path: after American Express David left to work as a gym instructor for a year. He then went back into the travel industry working in the call centre for Phileas Fogg Travel. After five months he was promoted to supervisor, then went on to manage a satellite office before becoming assistant manager at head office. Moved from there to Holiday Autos.
Advice for people wishing to develop a career in travel: “If you like travel and talking, you can’t go wrong. Get as much experience wherever you can but be prepared to work hard. The hours can be demanding and the phones can be very busy. If you can build a rapport with your customers and you can sell, you can make good money, not to mention getting cheap travel and holidays.”