WHEN I set up my interview
with chairman, Ana, and
md, Anthea, of Travkor
Sure Travel, Anthea told me firmly
that she wanted the focus of the
piece to be on the history of the
agency and how it had grown
under her mother’s leadership to
what it is today. “No,” argued Ana,
“you must talk about the future
and how Anthea is driving us
forward.”
However, as the story
of Travkor unfolded, it became
clear to me that its success
and its relevance in the
industry today are due to the
dual leadership of two strong,
determined women and their
committed, hands-on work ethic.
A Rhodesian of Greek origin,
Ana explains that she first came
to Johannesburg as a very young
bride.
She was determined to work
and got a job at the Dutch agency,
Lisland, through one of her
husband’s associates.
At the time, it was the second
largest agency in the world. A few
years later, Ana joined the new
start-up, Yale Travel, and describes
the team of ladies, based in
Braamfontein, in their mustard
1960s uniforms, as being “real
upstarts” at the time.
Rennies Travel took note and
in 1969 bought out the agency,
which eventually became its
flagship Rennies Yale office and
the seat of the consortium’s head
office operations.
To stay part of the team, Ana
had to apply for a position within
Rennies and was finally appointed
the first marketing manager for
the group. She was the only
female to apply for the position
and also became the first female
to be appointed as an executive
at Rennies Travel.
Under her leadership, over nearly
two decades, Rennies Travel
grew from five offices to over 20
locations.
Many years later in the late
’80s, Ana went through what her
son describes as “a mid-life crisis
with the best-ever consequences
for our family,” which resulted in
her leaving her top management
position to get back into a handson, shop-front role. Ana says
she had never lost sight of the
fact that travel was essentially
about making people’s plans and
dreams come true.
Ahead of the Johannesburg trend
of decentralisation, Ana started
up Travkor Travel in 1988 in a
Sandton-based office. She
says, at the time,
Sandown Travel was the only other
agency operating in the area.
Meanwhile, her daughter Anthea,
an attorney by profession, was
the senior legal adviser at Liberty
Life.
“She told me it was time to
make a change to spend more
time with her kids. I think in
the end she probably spent
less time with them,” exclaims
Ana, who describes travel as an
industry that calls for extremely
hard work.
Anthea joined in 1992, just
four years after the agency had
opened and has been there ever
since, as it grew from strength
to strength. She describes the
transition to a more chaotic
industry as difficult at first but
says she was lucky to have her
mother’s extensive knowledge to
draw on at all times.
“When I started Travkor I wanted
to do things my way again,” says
Ana, quipping that nowadays she
does things Anthea’s way.
“I eventually discovered that
travel is logical. If you put yourself
in the position of the traveller
and make an effort to understand
their needs, you will do well. It
is an industry that requires a
combination of logistical and
creative skills for success,” says
Anthea.
The agency now owns its own
building in a prime position on
Sandton Drive and is proud to be
a Sure Travel founding
member and the
only Virtuoso Club member in
Africa. It is also the recipient of
so many industry awards that
there isn’t space to list them all.
Most recently, Anthea, who
heads up the agency’s MICE
division, won the 2017 Cruises
International Top MICE agent
award and a 2018 Singapore
Airlines top agency supporter
award.
When asked where the future of
travel lay, both Ana and Anthea
agree that the travel industry has
changed from an environment
where agents could survive as
order-takers on tickets alone, to a
highly competitive, ever-changing
landscape. Both feel that the
future for their agency is as a
highly specialised niche market
expert.
“Over the years we have
developed close working
relationships with incredible
suppliers around the world. We
deal direct and, as a result of the
unique products that we bring to a
market where many retail agents
push out undifferentiated package
offerings, we have become the
go-to agents for customised
leisure, MICE and corporate travel
in this town,” says Ana. She says
in life one must be flexible to
accept changes and re-strategise
one’s direction.
“Travkor’s success could also not
have been achieved without the
loyal hard-working efforts of our
staff,” adds Anthea. “Success is a
team effort.
Getting to know Anthea
Anthea is mum to three grown
up kids.
The family live on a large
plot in Chartwell.
Her hobbies outside of
her hectic work schedule
include gardening and
cooking.
She is an animal lover
and has four dogs and
three cats.
She is extremely well
travelled and lists the
Maldives and visiting
New England in the fall
as two of her favourite
destinations.
Anthea makes a point
of leading most of
Travkor’s MICE groups
herself. She says
something will always
go wrong at some
point, but for every
problem, there will be a
solution.
Getting to know Ana
Ana is a people person
who loves entertaining.
She loves her home and
takes much pride in it.
Ana is a great collector
especially of art, objects
from around the world
and antiques.
She has two children.
Anthea is an attorney
and her brother
Stephen is a doctor.
Ana says if she had
had a third child it
would have become
an accountant. Anthea
quips that Travkor is
Ana’s third child.
