Business Development Travel Advisor/Hospitality Manager

Kristina DeBruyn

Grand Rapids, Mi. ***** 1-616-***-**** ****************@*****.***

Luxury Travel Advisor and Small Bakery Business Owner with over 17 years of industry expertise, specializing in bespoke travel experiences and new business development. Demonstrated strong skills in employee engagement, sales & marketing, and maintaining high-end resort relationships to enhance client satisfaction and loyalty. Known for curating personalized itineraries and driving substantial revenue growth through effective collaboration with hospitality partners both in the travel and hospitality industries.

Work Experience

Luxury Travel Advisor

ULTIMATE JET VACATIONS-Miami, FL

December 2023 to September 2024

● I worked remotely with clients to determine their needs and advise them of my expertise on luxury travel.

● I worked exclusively with 5- Star luxury resorts nationwide.

● My day consisted of reaching out to clients who have either reached out to my company for our services or to clients in my personal book of business, via telephone calls or with informative emails to follow regarding our discussion of their travel needs.

● Maintain a professional working relationship with service management, hotel administrators, sales teams, and other vital hospitality team members.

● I research using our companies GDS systems as well as contracted agencies, hotels, resorts and DMC's.

● I built itineraries, create personalized quotes, price match and compare, follow specific booking contracts, finalize bookings, create and send invoices. I work hand in hand with other aspects of our company such as our professional concierge team, our company dedicated air team as well as other agents in our company, our product development team, business development team and business success management.

● Weekly and monthly personal sales inventory, invoice reconciliation and business reports.

● I maintained client relations with a concierge style service from the moment they become our client to the moment they return from their travels. Travel Agent

ARCHER TRAVEL SERVICE, INC.-Grand Rapids, MI

November 2021 to July 2023

Independent agency owner working with and certified through Archer Travel.

● Create travel procedures, contracts, travel request forms, service agreements, payment procedures, and billing tools used in my personal agency.

● Create itineraries for international and domestic travel, including flights, hotels, rental cars, tours and ground transportation.

● Specialize in group travel. Planned, organized, and created a 15-day customized itinerary for a group of 40+ to international destinations. Coordinated all flights, and transportation, such as buses, boats and hotel transport, hotel room blocks, restaurant reservations, and daily excursions. I accompanied the group where I acted as a concierge for clients while traveling, handling travel delays, missed flights, lost luggage, emergencies, and individual client needs.

● Maintain and promote professional and courteous client relations by managing a prompt and accurate response to inquiries.

Owner/Operator

Great Harvest Bread Co.-Grand Rapids, MI

July 2007 to August 2021

Owned and operated a nationwide franchise. Great Harvest is a “freedom” franchise that enabled us as owners to customize our independent locations, and create daily/seasonal menus around our demographic and customer needs. We freshly milled our own flour daily from wheat berries provided by a wheat farm in Montana that served as a private provider for Great Harvest Bread franchises, in order to guarantee the finest, freshest, high-quality products. We used all fresh ingredients, with no additives or preservatives. I started out working for the previous owner as store manager where I quickly grew in skill and knowledge of all daily operations, employee management, and customer relations. After working for him for 2 years, I offered to purchase the franchise from him. I quickly increased sales up to $1.2 million and decreased inventory costs and payroll from 43% to 24-25%. After owning a single location for 2 years I built and opened a second location. Purchased used equipment from 2 separate franchise owners, drove across the country to pick up and disassemble a full equipment and appliance package, where we built a new store from the ground up, reassembled all equipment, hired and trained a full new staff, and opened within 4 months. I ran both locations with the help of a managing partner. I managed 2 teams of 12-15 each while maintaining a 90%+ employee retention. After a fire in 2018 resulting in a total loss, I rebuilt my original store from scratch. After being closed for 9 months, I quickly brought sales back and retained my employees and customer base.

● Increased annual sales to $1.2 million while also enhancing guest experience and driving improvements in guest satisfaction scores. Scored 95% or higher on all secret shops implemented by the franchise corporate office.

● Implemented a full-service cafe serving breakfast and lunch along with a coffee/cappuccino bar.

● Created a full menu of soups, salads, and hot/cold sandwiches. Expanded our storefront from 1200sq. ft to 2500 sq. ft adding in a 30-seat dining area.

● Reduced overhead and introduced cost controls for ingredient inventory, and ordering process, contributing to sales growth.

● Redesigned hiring processes and training programs to create consistency and clarity for all staff.

● Ability to maintain composed and level-headed under pressure.

● Multi-taking

● Attention to detail and industry awareness

● Strong leadership skills

● Bookkeeping, accounting and QuickBooks experience

● Scheduling and payroll for employees in all departments

● Weekly inventory and ordering of all ingredients and nonfood items. EDUCATION

Associate's degree in Nursing

Grand Rapids Community College - Grand Rapids, MI

August 2001 to December 2003

Associate's Degree in Criminal Justice

Grand Rapids Community College - Grand Rapids, MI

August 1995 to April 1997

Certifications and Licenses

ServSafe-2023

TIPS

June 2023 to June 2028

SKILLS

• Multi-Unit Operations Management • Market & Territory Expansion • Continuous Improvement Employee Engagement • Team Building & Coaching • Performance Metrics • Guest/Customer Experience Budget Administration • Revenue Growth • Cost Controls • Payroll • Accounts Payable & Receivable • Forecasting Sales & Marketing • Public Relations • New Business Development • Regulatory Compliance • Purchasing • Hospitality Leadership • Food & Beverage Operations Facility Maintenance • Safety Protocols • Menu Development • Inventory Management Travel certifications available upon request.

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