Agents' interest in traditional overseas conferences has "dwindled", which is why Aito now wants its agent members taking inspiration from mountain hikes and husky experiences in the Swiss Alps instead. Ahead of the association's annual agent "famference" this week, Aito Agents Chair Gemma Antrobus joins TTG to explain why a new, non-traditional approach to networking is paying off.
This year's 'famference' is bringing together agents, operators and the media for a programme that swaps conference halls for mountain carts, husky experiences and alpine hikes in Switzerland
"Business is done on the golf course – it's sometimes much better to do activities together than sit across a table from each other," says Gemma Antrobus, who has chaired the Aito Agents group for more than a decade.
Ahead of the association's annual "famference", which is this year being held in Switzerland's Saas-Fee, Haslemere Travel owner Antrobus argues that some of the strongest commercial relationships can come from shared experiences rather than traditional networking.
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