Luxury Travel Studio founder Helen Thomas shares the key to business growth 

I got into travel...15 years ago. 

Travel has always been a huge passion of mine – after my A-levels, I took a gap year and travelled around Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong. I even started a degree in travel and tourism at university, but left after a few months. I also had many opportunities to travel during my earlier careers in sport and corporate telecoms, but it was only after I had my children that I decided to properly join the industry. 

I started the business...nine years ago, after working with independent agencies and Travel Counsellors. 

I was driven by my passion for luxury travel and finding unique destinations and experiences. It’s my dream job and, as an added bonus, I’m sometimes able to take my own family on my travels to visit places that I can personally recommend. 

I have grown the business...by focusing on the customer relationship and ensuring that we go over and above with the client experience.

For me it’s about trust and friendship – not just the transaction. From this, I find referrals come naturally.

The biggest growth area is...adventure and experiential travel. 

Our clients definitely see learning and having a sense of place as more important than just baking in the sun. You can’t get that at a click of a mouse, so there will always be a demand for good travel agents who have specialist experience, are well travelled themselves and are ‘in the know’.

The suppliers I have the strongest relationships with are...varied. 

We work with a carefully selected, relatively small number of tour operators with whom we have formed strong relationships over the years. For each enquiry we select the tour operator and specific staff that best match the client’s needs. 

My proudest career achievement is...being asked to speak on one of the panel discussions at the 2025 Carrier Retreat. 

It was the first time in 20 years that I had to sit in front of an audience, be questioned and think on the spot. It was lovely to receive so many compliments afterwards.