Travel sail away to success

Travel colleagues from across Lincolnshire Co-op are celebrating after scooping two award nominations at a prestigious national awards ceremony celebrating the best of the UK travel industry.

The Agent Achievement Awards in association with Travel Weekly will be held in July at the glitzy Park Plaza Hotel in London.

Travel Consultant Claire Smith from Carlton Centre travel branch in Lincoln is one of just seven nominees for the Leisure Agent of the Year Award in the High Street category.

And the whole of Lincolnshire Co-op Travel is nominated for the Best Medium Sized Agency Award for the Central England area. This award is voted for by suppliers.

Claire, who has worked at Lincolnshire Co-op for 30 years and for the Carlton Centre branch for 16 years, was nominated by her Area Manager Sue Hare.

The nomination called out her positive, can-do attitude and her exemplary customer service. As well as helping to deliver great results for the branch, Claire was also instrumental in the success of a toy appeal held before Christmas.

“It’s exciting to be nominated and a lovely surprise to be one of one of the top seven agents in the country,” said Claire.

“I love my job, especially making people happy. My ideal situation is creating a holiday for someone on a tight budget, who isn’t sure what they can get or where to go, and ensuring they walk out of the branch, beaming, with a brilliant holiday planned.

“My team at the Carlton Centre are wonderful too. We work hard, we have a great work ethic, and we all support each other.”

Lincolnshire Co-op runs 13 independent travel agencies across Greater Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire.

“To be shortlisted for the best agency award is an honour and a testament to all of the team, who work hard to deliver brilliant customer service to our customers, as well as building relationships with our suppliers,” he said.

“I’m also proud of Claire who is a highly-deserved nominee for the agent of the year award. She’s everything we’re about at Lincolnshire Co-op travel – dedicated, passionate and loves nothing more than using her expertise to find our clients the perfect break.”