The Essex-based agency was crowned UK and Ireland’s No. 1 Luxury Agency 2025 at the awards ceremony in London last November, having already been recognised as the Top Luxury Leisure Agency (office) earlier that evening.
Judges hailed the agency for its outstanding workplace culture, innovative marketing strategy and extended client event programme, along with its record-breaking sales achievements.
Five months on from awards ceremony, Winged Boots has now revealed how the recognition has impacted their relationships with trade partners.
“It tells them ‘we are the real deal – you're working with one of the top agencies,’” David Ox, owner of Winged Boots, told TTG. “I had suppliers approach me on the night, who’d never heard of us before. They wanted to introduce themselves and ask about doing business with us.”
Ox, who launched Winged Boots’ first retail store in Shenfield last October, also said the win had encouraged an “influx” of job applications.
“It’s really fascinating to see interest from people outside of the industry,” Ox said. “I’ve had applicants with city-based professions, like private equity, who are looking to switch into luxury travel. They’ve researched us and think we’d be a good fit.”
David Ox, managing director at Winged Boots, also said they've been flooded with CVs following the win
Ox added that these new-to-industry candidates have the potential to bring “amazing” value to Winged Boots by providing their own “black book” of readymade clients.
As for the advice he’d give applicants for the TTG Top 20 Luxury Travel Agencies 2026, Ox emphasised the importance of submitting a “well-rounded application.”
“It’s not all about the shiny stuff – it can’t just be about your travel achievements,” he warned. “You need to showcase how you treat your team – the workplace culture, including incentives and benefits."
Ox also believes Winged Boots’ high staff retention gave them an edge against competitors: “We employ over 30 people, and with the exception of someone who’s resigning later this month to pursue a non-sales role, we haven’t had someone leave in two years.”
As for his clients’ reaction to the accolade, Ox said the response was overwhelmingly positive. “I had so many messages from clients to say congratulations. Of course, you always hope you’re doing the right thing, but this really solidified it.”
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