Fresh from being awarded Best Travel Agency Group (100 outlets or more) at AFTA’s National Travel Industry Awards on Saturday night, today at Helloworld, we celebrate our first anniversary.

After only one year, this recognition and award is a significant achievement. To be recognised in this category at our national industry awards is the perfect way to complete a defining 12-month period.

I would like to congratulate all Helloworld winners and finalists and I would like to recognise and thank everyone who contributed to our success – our franchisees, members, consultants, managers, staff and preferred supply partners for their continued hard work, dedication and support.

This award belongs to everyone who embraced the case for change, understood the benefits of moving to a single brand and, importantly, has a passion for travel.

Now is an opportune time to reflect on how far we have come in the last 12 months and visualise what the future holds for both our brand and the Group.

The launch of Helloworld represents one of the most significant transformations ever to take place in the Australian travel industry. While we commenced the development of our strategy 18 months ago, the implementation process has taken place in the past 12 months.

We can now look back on this period with a great sense of pride. In what is a relatively short space of time, we have successfully repositioned our group as a multichannel business, united under a single, contemporary brand with a clear strategy for future success.

We are delivering enhanced value to each of our franchisees and members and I am very proud that Helloworld is at the forefront of the industry, offering a compelling and flexible proposition for every Australian traveller.

In Australia, the Helloworld Limited network comprises approximately 300 branded Helloworld locations, 400 Helloworld brand-carrying associate locations, 300 Helloworld affiliate locations. In addition there are a further 440 locations operating as longstanding affiliates of Helloworld Limited under the Concorde Agency Network. Our total network comprises in excess of 1,700 locations across Australia and New Zealand, with close to 1,000 of this number operating under Helloworld's three retail models.

The Helloworld brand has a strong visual presence across Australia with 700 branded and brand-carrying associate locations. This is significantly more than Harvey World Travel, Travelscene American Express, Travelworld or Jetset Travel had in their individual networks.

However, the store numbers only tell half the story. Consider that, in the past twelve months, we have launched our new brand, introduced three new retail models and transitioned close to 1,000 high-quality agents to these new models, all while maintaining our day-to-day operations. In the process, we have also reduced operating costs by 10% and launched our new website, Helloworld.com.au to the Australian market.

At Helloworld, we are transforming the travel experience for customers across the country. Australian travellers are warmly receiving our brand and our value proposition and our agents have readily adopted our Customer Charter, products, services and business philosophy. For customers, this means that they have confidence whenever they visit a Helloworld store. They know they will receive convenient booking options, excellent service and a huge range of best value, tailor-made holidays.

Likewise, our agents are benefiting from a shared voice under one brand, supported by a consolidated marketing investment that will continue to grow in the coming months. They receive a high level of support, both from our business managers and from the benefit of belonging to a strong network of agents, backed by the credibility that comes with being part of a high profile, dependable travel company.

Our agencies have all the tools they need to put their retailing expertise into practice and drive sales growth in their businesses. I can confidently say that no other travel company in Australia currently offers Helloworld’s extensive agency model options with such a strong value proposition, service levels, support and flexibility.

What we have achieved during this time has been truly astounding. I believe that this is testament to the strength of our new consumer offering, the passion of our Helloworld team and our growing network of Helloworld agents.

However, I believe the most telling sign of our success is the reaction of our franchisees and members to our new brand and ethos. I recently had the opportunity to meet with Helloworld agents across the country at our inaugural Helloworld state meetings and was greatly impressed with the way in which our agents have embraced Helloworld and what it stands for.

Our franchisees represent the experience, passion for travel, commitment to customer service and local knowledge that's central to Helloworld's customer value proposition. To see them live and breathe our brand was inspiring.

That brings us to the future. Following my appointment as chief executive in March of this year, we have pursued the Helloworld vision with renewed energy and I have thoroughly enjoyed leading the business during this pivotal time. With the most critical phase of the transformation completed, our focus is now on growing our brand presence in the Australian market.

One imperative for the future is to deliver our value proposition to our agents and our customers. To ensure we accomplish this, we aim to encourage a strong, vibrant and connected network of agents, driving high levels of consumer awareness. We will also continue to build our reputation for being true travel experts by attracting and retaining the best agents in the country. All of this is supported by a leading edge online offering in Helloworld.com.au.

I am intent on delivering a strong culture of collaboration. This is a priority across the entire group. By introducing an energised, positive culture that recognises and rewards excellence, we aim to become an employer of choice within the travel industry. This will enable us and our franchisees and members to attract new talent and retain the existing talent in our business.

To recap, over the past 12 months, we have equipped our business to handle the challenges of tomorrow for the benefit of our members and franchisees, our employees, our business and our industry.

Travel remains one of the fastest growing sectors of the Australian economy and, as a nationwide, pre-eminent brand, we are in a strong position to capture that growth. We are now bigger than any of our pre-existing brands and our presence is growing. We are committed to ongoing investment to support travel agents and we are adding strength to the entire industry and improving standards in the process.

I am personally very excited about the prospects for the future of Helloworld. Our scale is continuing to grow, our brand presence is building and many opportunities are opening before us. I look forward to continuing on this journey of success over the next 12 months.

Helloworld celebrates its first birthday by being awarded Best Travel Agency Group at NTIA

At the recent launch of Helloworld Mackay and Helloworld Mt Pleasant: John Cooney, Director at Helloworld Mackay and Mt Pleasant; Julie Primmer, Head of Branded Network at Helloworld Limited; and Steven Boxall, General Manager at Helloworld Mackay and Mt Pleasant

Helloworld Toronto, NSW

Helloworld Charlestown Square, NSW

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ebujtopItDk

Helloworld's TVC, unveiled February.