Five of the LTAs got together at Saga HQ in London earlier this month, with a sixth joining from her home in Turkey. The programme gives LTAs access to Saga’s entire product portfolio, and supports them to run their own travel business.

Following their induction, the LTAs will receive one-to-one coaching sessions with a dedicated business coach, as well as support from a dedicated business development manager in addition to day-to-day support.

The over-50s specialist will also provide them marketing collateral and ongoing training, plus a "business in a box" containing all the technology they need to get started.

Once up and running, Saga’s LTAs will be able to sell the entire Saga programme locally and/or remotely. This spans Saga’s hotel stays and short breaks, its escorted tours, ocean cruises and river cruises, and its tailor-made portfolio. In addition, LTAs will also have access to some third-party product partners.

It comes after Saga last year stepped away from supporting the UK travel trade, choosing only to work with select trade partners. Independent agents can, though, continue to access Saga product through its Titan Travel brand.

The initial training day took the recruits through the product available to them and how best to use social media to promote their businesses, as well as sessions on the art of storytelling, PR and brand building. They were also fled and photographed for their own website, social and business collateral.

Iain Powell, Saga Travel Group trading director, said: “It was great to have the first cohort of our local travel advisors join us at our London offices to meet the team and one another.

“It was an opportunity for us to provide them with the tools to really build their business, from using social media effectively, to how to tell the story and build their brand. We’re really looking forward to seeing what they achieve, and we’ll be supporting them every step of the way.”

Wolverhampton-based Sharon Almond is one of Saga’s first LTAs. “It was a fantastic day full of great content on how to take my business to the next level," she said. "I left feeling really empowered and it was great to meet the Saga team and my fellow LTAs.”