THERE are twins among them; elderly couples and entire families; the young and not so young, and the initially sceptical who became converted enthusiasts asking where was Sandals all their lives.

But the one thing they have in common is that they are the super sales agents — some having attained the lofty status of elite members of the Chairman’s Royal Club (CRC) — the people who collectively drive millions of tourists each year to resorts like Sandals and the Caribbean as a whole.

What sets these people apart is the unbridled passion, not just for making money — which they easily acknowledge — but for ensuring that their clients have the best time possible cavorting in the alluring blue waters of the Caribbean Sea, tanning in its golden sun and pampered by friendly staff in a safe environment.

“This is very important to me,” says Lisa Griswold of Atlanta, Georgia-based Pixie Vacations. “If I send my clients on a vacation which turns out to be crappy, the guilt is on me. I get deep satisfaction when they come back and tell me they want to go back again and again.”

Today, like every first Wednesday of May, has been designated National Travel Advisor Day in the United States, and Sandals Resorts International (SRI) used the occasion to celebrate its travel agents with five days of over-the-top fetes, fine dining, cocktails, family cruises, excursions or just chilling in resort Ocho Rios on Jamaica’s scenic north coast.

Gordon “Butch” Stewart started the Chairman’s Royal Club about nine years ago to create a rarified environment for the resort chain’s top agents. Within the Club is an elite band of agents who can only enter after achieving a minimum of 250 Sandals bookings in a calendar year, and an even loftier Diamond League for 500 bookings.

The day was also used to announce, among a slew of key innovations, the first ever introduction of an ombudsman style senior CRC executive concierge, empowering trail-blazing Trinidad-born Vanessa Rostant to operate as a “one stop shop” for problem-solving.

“Vanessa will have speed dial rights to all key SRI executives to handle all client complaints,” said Gary Sadler, the Jamaican senior vice- president for worldwide sales at Miami-based Unique Vacations, worldwide representatives of Sandals and Beaches.

The announcement drew applause from the elite agents meeting at the Sandals Royal Plantation in Ocho Rios, and from Director of Tourism Donovan White who made a presentation to them on what Jamaica was doing to further enhance the island as a top tourist destination.

Rostant, a former assistant to Sadler, was brimming with praise for the travel agents, noting: “They are extremely knowledgeable about our resorts and their production reflects that.”

Griswold, who operates the nine-year-old Pixie Vacations with husband, Steve, left Disney World, Orlando, when she fell in love with Sandals at an awards function in St Lucia four years ago.

“My friend Lisa Lacey received an award as a top Sandals sales agent and I said to myself, that is going to be me. It has been a lot of fun learning the different islands and resorts. It had its own challenges, of course, because while the culture in many of the resorts are similar, they all have their own special spice and flavour. It’s been very exciting learning to grasp the differences,” said Griswold.

“I get my satisfaction from knowing that my clients are confident that we are selling them a quality vacation. With Sandals, we don’t have to worry about the quality. And it’s nice to say when you get there, put your wallet in your room safe (that’s because of the no-tip policy) and you are all done. Just go have fun.”

Robbie and Mike Phillips started selling Sandals 16 years after launching their 26-year-old Royal Travel Agency out of Tennessee and, with the resort accounting for 85-90 per cent of their business, are regarded as “the specialists” in their area, handling mainly weddings and honeymoons.

The Phillips and their children, Kali Hanson, daughter, and Tait, son, accepted a challenge from Chairman Stewart who told them he had a good product and assured them they would not regret a day of it.

“It’s critical for us that our clients are completely satisfied with their vacation and Sandals does this for us,” said Mike, confessing that they love Jamaica and have been visiting for most of their 26 years in the travel business, even spending their personal vacation time on the island.

“Selling Sandals has been good for us. We often turn away other business. We are pleased with the support, the training, the familiarisation or fam trips to learn the product that Sandals provides. They also wrap our cars, turning them into mobile billboards,” Robbie added.

Ryan Speakman operates his travel agency, Got 2 Go, with his mom, Karen Speakman, and sister Beth out of Wigan near Manchester, England. “I love travel but it wasn’t something I was going to do as a career. I was studying to be a doctor. Then I switched and decided to go with my heart over my head. No regrets since then.

“We started the travel agency 11 years ago and learned about Sandals nine years ago. We have been growing from strength to strength. Our numbers are going in the right direction, which is good for us. We try different ways to entice our clients to buy Sandals. Once they go, they always want to go back,” said Speakman.

Kerri Brewster of Escapes Unlimited saw the writing on the wall and it told her exactly what direction to go. After working as a business development manager (BDM) for four years for Sandals, based in Arizona, she could see the wisdom of selling Sandals —as an owner-operated travel agency.

Three years ago she took the plunge and last year qualified for elite membership in the CRC. It came as no surprise to her. As a BDM, Brewster had travelled to every Sandals property and knew them inside out. Now Sandals accounts for 95 per cent of her bookings.

“It is such a quality brand, I don’t have to worry about selling it to my clients. It is a valuable product which I sell because of its inclusions: the shuttle transfers; the no-tipping policy; the water sports such as snorkelling and diving; the food and the top shelf liquor.”

Larry Field, owner and his twin brother Dennis, an agent, work together at their Everlasting Memories travel agency from Buffalo, New York for the past 19 years. Ten years ago they were introduced by a Sandals BDM to the Caribbean’s leading hotel brand and have not looked back since. Now 60 per cent of all their bookings is Sandals.

Larry last year achieved elite CRC status and says he 

already has enough bookings to be sure he will maintain the coveted status next year. In fact, he is already planning to go to the next level, Diamond League, by achieving 500 bookings, confident he can get there in a couple of years.

“Sandals is like our family in the travel business. Our return clients keep going up every year. We are actually growing by 10 per cent every year since starting with Sandals.”

Adam Anderson of Wedding Vibe said: “We have been proudly selling Sandals Resorts since 2013. We focus primarily on honeymoon travel and Sandals is a perfect fit for our clients looking for a romantic getaway. We have grown into doing destination weddings and now our past honeymooners are calling us for Beaches trips for their growing families!

“Sandals provides amazing support and go above and beyond to help us sell an incredible product. We choose to only sell Sandals because they give us the ability to sell with confidence. “We know that when we book a client at a Sandals resort, they will get the best experience for their dollar. We also know that the entire Sandals staff will take amazing care of our clients and that it will turn into repeat customers for years to come.”