Top 50 - South West - Travel by Hannah, Marlborough

Last year’s winner in the South West has had another strong year as Hannah Porter builds the high street business she founded in 2020, with customer numbers now well up. 

Social media continues to be a big driver of bookings, with the agency represented on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter, which has helped grow the family market by 30%. The team regularly post from their own travels – Sarah Joliffe’s live post from Elounda in Crete last October directly inspired a booking.

And in the last year, Travel by Hannah has started using independent review platform Trustpilot, garnering more than 100 five-star reviews.

As well as keeping a close eye on the training and development of new recruit Milla Callis, Hannah and Sarah regularly boost their own knowledge – an expedition cruise training event helped Hannah book a premium cabin on a ship in Polynesia for a customer. The store also has a growing base of sports clients after the team visited football stadiums across the UK.

A new partnership with Wiltshire Council means every couple that registers for a religious or civil ceremony in the county is given information about Travel by Hannah for honeymoon booking purposes.

Other local tie-ups include supporting Marlborough College’s Concert Series and Marlborough Rugby Club. The team has also helped raise £10,000 for Wiltshire Air Ambulance by donating a £300 holiday voucher.

They were the only travel agent at a wedding fair in Marlborough’s town hall last September and used a local book shop to host a river cruise-focused customer event with Avalon, where they served wine from a local supplier.

Sustainability measures range from nearly halving paper usage to helping customers plot the best routes for charging electric cars. Customers are given chic branded reusable bags, which have helped spark referrals including on a Princess Cruises ship in the Caribbean

travelbyhannah.co.uk