Patterson's role, known more widely in the industry as Business Development Manager, will see her work with Not Just Travel’s Platinum consultants alongside fellow Business Consultant Richard Lowrey-Heywood. Agents at Not Just Travel reach Platinum status when they earn £20,000 and more in commission.

Patterson joins from Kuoni’s retail marketing department, where she worked on event planning, social media and wider marketing support. Her campaigns spanned cruise, Black Friday and consumer email marketing, driving engagement and bookings through Kuoni’s stores.

She also led a regional departures campaign promoting flights from airports including Manchester, Sheffield and Liverpool.

At Kuoni, Patterson ran cruise events with Chris Winpenny, who was then Manager of Kuoni's Aberdeen store and is also now a Not Just Travel Business Consultant.

Prior to joining Kuoni, Patterson spent nearly 17 years as a Travel Consultant at Thomas Cook. Not Just Travel said she has a track record of turning social media engagement into bookings, and had also completed a two-year marketing course alongside her day job.

'I did a lot of digging before joininig'

Steve Witt, Not Just Travel Co-Founder, said: "Hayley brings a huge amount of experience from across the travel industry and adds a diverse set of skills to our business consultant team.

"We continue to keep the best ratio of support to travel consultants anywhere in the industry, and we keep investing in it: more business consultants and more skills to help our travel consultants grow."

Patterson said: "Even with strong recommendations from industry colleagues, I did a lot of digging and research around Not Just Travel. One of the biggest opportunities I see is that it gives people a real shot in life. 

"Many come from outside the travel industry and just need a chance to get into the most exciting industry in the world. They come to it fresh, with no preconceptions, so they can build their businesses differently from people who have been in the industry for years."

She added: "I'm really looking forward to getting to know each travel consultant personally and understanding why they set up their business, because everyone is different. Each person has their own goals and their own focus, and I want to support them as they grow."