Travology Travel has welcomed a new retail agency to its team, marking the first high street store of its collection. 

Founded by Laura Andrews, Eleve Luxury Travel is based in Ossett, West Yorkshire, and will specialise in honeymoons and weddings. 

Travology Travel owner Lucy Clarke said she feels “really positive” about the expansion, and will “support” Andrews in the same way she would her homeworking staff. 

“I think this partnership will ease the pressure on her,” she added. “I never even thought of taking on retail shops before, but I’d definitely consider it after this. Maybe Travology Travel will become bigger than I ever could have expected.”

Speaking exclusively to TTG Luxury, Andrews shared details on the upcoming venture after celebrating the official launch last Friday. 

“I’m not nervous about this, I’m excited!” she revealed. Andrews got her start in travel 15 years ago, organising first-class tours for a Midlands coach company. She left the industry to work in property, which provided more family-friendly hours, but had always dreamt of returning to tourism. 

In 2020, she was hired as a business development manager by a Wakefield travel agency before transitioning to Travel Safe in Horbury, where she co-ran the shop until its unfortunate closure. 

“It’s been a long time coming,” Andrews admitted. “I raised three boys on my own for 14 years. I’d always said, when they’re older, I would return to my passion. I’ve put my heart and soul into this shop.”  

This passion is evident in the establishment of Eleve Private Travel, the name of which carries a meaningful backstory. 

“First of all, I used to be a ballet dancer and ‘eleve’ is a French term for a movement in ballet that means to ‘rise’,” Andrews explained. “I had to give that career up due to a longstanding health issue. So that was very sentimental.”

She goes on to add that, as well as Paris being her favourite city, the word signifies the elevated level of service clients can expect from her business. 

The upscale experience begins from the moment of entry; customers step into a therapeutic space with pastel pink sofas and lush plants. Brochures for suppliers like Grecotel and Wendy Wu are neatly mounted on the wall and natural light pours through the large windows, creating an elegant vibe that reflects the quality of product on offer. 

“People have told me it feels very calming,” Andrews said. “The last thing I wanted was a sterile office. If I’m selling luxury holidays, the shop needs to replicate the standard of the hotels.”  

Andrews added that she even delayed opening the shop to ensure it looked perfect, pushing back the launch date until every single piece of furniture had arrived: “First impressions count. I didn’t want to open it half-done.” 

Despite being open for less than a week, Andrews has already seen the rewards of her hard work; she has been inundated with enquiries for bookings from both former and new clients.

She says that while she is happy to design almost any kind of holiday, her expertise lies in destination weddings and honeymoons.

“I don’t want to push the narrative that I only do that, but I do class as a specialty,” she said. “It’s definitely my niche, especially in this area of Yorkshire.” She also had extensive experience organising long-haul trips with complex itineraries, having often been frequently tasked with these types of bookings at Travel Safe. 

Andrews will be expanding her team in the near future, but for the time being, is focusing on streamlining the day-to-day workings of the shop. 

“I’m using my first few months to establish the operations, before I hire anyone new,” she says. “But I will be looking for part-timers and/or full-time employees to do admin or social media, and to hold down the fort while I attend fam trips or work events.”