Not Just Travel’s Agata Wiencis tells Samantha Mayling about serving the Polish community with husband and business partner Fabian via their agency MiniMax Travel
Q. Why did you move to the UK from Poland 20 years ago?
It was difficult to find a job in Poland and Fabian – now my husband – had a similar experience. We didn’t know each other at the time but both ended up in the UK – he was in Scotland, while I started in London. In Poland, one of my businesses was in wedding services. When I arrived here, I worked as a restaurant supervisor and ran Polish food shops. Fabian worked as an IT specialist in Poland and eventually got an IT job in the UK.
Q. Why did you set up MiniMax Travel in 2010?
I was bored running shops and working weekends – I wanted to work remotely, combining my passion for travel with business. Searching for companies to work with, I came across Steve Witt and Not Just Travel, and the adventure began. The name MiniMax Travel reflects our range, from the simplest to the most exclusive. Perhaps today we’d choose a different name, but it’s become well known so it wouldn’t be a good idea to change now.
Q. Where do you live?
We travelled the world looking for our place, but the UK is closest to our hearts so we returned and now live in the beautiful Scottish town of Banff. Fabian and I married in 2016. Together, we raised three wonderful daughters who have now left home – two are Fabian’s and one is mine. Now we focus more on ourselves and our work.
Q. How was Not Just Travel’s ‘Platinum Get‑Together’ aboard a Virgin Voyages cruise?
It was on Scarlet Lady, sailing round-trip from Barcelona in September. We had training sessions and lectures, but also time for ourselves. We attend as many NJT events as possible because we always come away with incredible energy and new knowledge. This one was aimed at agents who have reached Platinum status and above.
Q. What holidays do you sell?
We mostly serve the Polish community, but not exclusively. We sell everything from city breaks and bucket-and-spade holidays to exotic and multi-centre trips as well as cruises. We’ve also run UK summer camps for kids since 2014, offering one or two weeks of activities. Our company name is 123 Camps and we trade as 123 Kolonie. We are an Ofsted-registered childcare provider but strive to make it about great holidays, not just childcare.
Q. How does social media help your business?
My first booking was a trip to Egypt for a friend, who left a positive Facebook review. Today, we have about 34,000 Facebook followers. Fabian uses various methods on the platform, such as ads for different types of trips as well as photos and memories from our clients’ holidays. This helps build trust with future clients. Facebook and other social media are our main channels for gaining clients and where Fabian focuses most of his efforts.
Q. What market trends are you seeing?
People want to explore new and more exotic places. Multi-centre trips are becoming very popular, as well as cruises, but we still have families who want to go away for a cheaper holiday and just relax. We also see a big need for group trips; many people simply have no one to travel with. We already have several planned, including to Turkey, the US and Japan, and we plan to organise more of these. Not everyone can afford holidays and sometimes we have to work with a limited budget. However, holidays are such an important part of life that people are willing to give up other things.
Q. What type of holidays do you like to take?
Since our daughters left home, we have one trip after another in our calendar. This year we’ve been to Jamaica, Thailand and Madeira, and on cruises to Norway with Princess Cruises, the Canary Islands with P&O Cruises and the Mediterranean with Virgin Voyages. We’ve also been to Romania and Turkey and took a US group trip with almost 50 people.
Tell us about being NJT’s first homeworker
NJT began The Travel Franchise in 2010. After the first conversation with them, I knew working with NJT would be successful. Today, it has more than 600 consultants, and it’s still a pleasure to be part of the journey. At first, there were no visible results from my work – I was learning and looking for clients. Fabian joined after two years to focus on marketing and IT. We became a couple and business partners. He developed our website and advertising, while I booked holidays. Eventually, I had more enquiries than I could handle so we expanded and now have six homeworkers.
We have many repeat clients and referrals plus new customers from Fabian’s work. I got the ‘Diamond Director’ award in April, NJT’s highest recognition, as I’ve made £1 million commission over the lifetime of my franchise. Benefits include a VIP level of service, top-level commission and support from the founders. With the principle of 3Ps – persistent, positive and patient – we didn’t give up and results came. We work from home but are considering opening shops and expanding our team so we can keep growing.