Starkey will be responsible for developing and supporting relationships with travel agents across the south of England – including identifying new opportunities to "maximise sales" through Premier Holidays. She will also "travel extensively" across the territory meeting agents and attending industry events.

Her CV includes a decade in retail travel, with a background spanning sales, business development, and supplier relationships across brands such as Trailfinders and STA Travel. She joins Premier Holidays from Sunlounger Travel Group, where she was Branch Manager at its Milton Keynes shop. 

Dom Carrick, the recently appointed head of trade sales at Premier Holidays, said Starkey's retail background would be a major asset to the team.

"Her extensive retail travel experience and strong commercial background make her a fantastic addition to our trade sales team. She understands first-hand what agents need from their supplier partners, and her passion for building genuine, long-term relationships really stood out to us," he explained.

Starkey said she was "absolutely delighted" to be joining Premier Holidays. "Having spent many years working in retail travel, I understand how important strong supplier relationships are to agents," she said. "I’m looking forward to getting out and meeting our trade partners, understanding their businesses and working together to identify opportunities to grow sales."

Her appointment follows a series of senior developments at Premier Holidays, including Sara Park's promotion to Head of Marketing last October and Clare Crowson's move into the newly created Senior Partnership Manager role in January.