We recently connected with Alia Pierson and have shared our conversation below.

Alia, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. So, let’s start with trends – what are some of the largest or more impactful trends you are seeing in the industry?

I’ve noticed several exciting trends shaping the travel industry.

Personalized experiences are gaining momentum, with travelers seeking unique, tailor-made adventures that reflect their individual interests. About 90% of our itineraries are custom, meaning no two trips are alike. As a travel designer this is so exciting as we love creating unique experiences for clients.

Multi-generational trips are also on the rise, with more families taking those bucket list vacations as a group, sometimes spanning 4 generations! We’ve had many families from great-grand parents to their great-grand children travel to Europe, the Caribbean and Disney Destinations as a group.

Additionally, there’s a growing interest in off-the-beaten-path destinations, as travelers crave authenticity and a deeper connection with the places they visit. With the rise of social media travel influencers, we often get requests for itineraries based off what they’ve seen online. Our biggest request, Italy, has shaped nearly a quarter of our business going into 2024 and I give social media (and the beautiful location, of course) the credit to that trend. Our clients want experiences like pizza making in a locals home, wine tasting on vineyards and private experiences the average traveler wouldn’t know about.

It’s no surprise that many are taking more thoughtful and experiential trips as 2020 was a year that many weren’t sure we would be able to do those things again. Memories over material things has taken precedence and, I feel, has created a sense of urgency to travel to the places we’ve dreamed of.

At Briar & Main, we’re committed to curating journeys that align with these evolving trends, ensuring our clients embark on unforgettable and meaningful travel experiences.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I graduated with a BA in Media Management and Theatre Arts in 2004 and have had the entrepreneur bug ever since then.

I began working as professional actress in San Diego, Los Angeles as well as behind the scenes at a local TV station. Meanwhile, my husband and I started a dessert catering company that quickly became successful.

We sold the business in 2007 and moved to the Pacific Northwest where I began a career in cake design. After many moves, we found ourselves in Arizona in 2014 with 2 kids (2 more in the future) and an exciting new beginning. I started a luxury wedding cake design company and quickly became one of the top designers in Arizona, but I wanted adventure in the great wide open…

In 2015 I discovered that I could help families plan Disney Vacations. So Cal kid that can work with the Mouse from Arizona? Yes!

I started doing this along side my other business and in 2019 launched Briar & Main Travel Boutique as I discovered a true passion for travel planning. I’ve since achieved a CTA (certified travel advisor), VTA (verified travel advisor with ASTA) and am a certified Destination Wedding & Honeymoon Specialist.

We quickly grew as we brought on independent travel agents throughout the USA, helping families, groups and honeymooners with their travels not only domestically but internationally. We are now an award winning travel agency with distinctions from the Walt Disney Travel Co, Universal Resorts and Sandals Corp.

It’s makes me most proud that we are able to take the stress of planning an amazing trip for clients that don’t have the time to do so or are simply overwhelmed with the amount of choices online. They want to make sure their investment is worth it and that they are being guided by knowledgeable and professional consultants. Our team has helped over 2,000 clients achieve their travel dreams!

After 20 years of working in the hospitality industry, we truly know the meaning of customer service and continue to uphold high standards for our itineraries as well as on call support for our clients.

Our mission at Briar & Main is to simplify the travel planning process for clients and create genuine relationships. We are not a booking engine, but a team that knows the emotional stakes of vacations and wants to be on their team for all of their memory making travels.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

In all transparency, this business is not for the faint of heart. I had a slow start I would say because people only saw me as what my previous business was. That’s not a bad thing, because I put 110% in that business as well. But when starting any new venture, it takes time for your family, friends and colleagues to see the change and value in you.

Travel advisors have been around for decades, but when the internet came along (and now ChatGPT) many thought, well why do I even need a travel advisor, I can just do this all myself? While that may be true, there are those that value the concierge level support, destination expertise and knowledge from a real person, not a booking engine or AI assistant.

Since I’ve started I’ve found myself educating on these principles a lot whether in person at events and especially on social media.

Now the travel industry is booming once again and if it wasn’t for travel advisors in 2020, that may not have happened. Associations like ASTA lobby for our industry on capital hill daily. It has been and will be a viable career no matter what the internet or ChatGPT has to say :)

When all is said and done though, team morale and customer service is the pinnacle of an agencies success. I put a lot of pride in my team of travel advisors and as a result had created a support system for each other. Creating opportunities for them to excel in their craft through trainings, in person events and one-on-one mentorship has been essential to creating the culture within our association. This work in turn creates a better experience for our clients and repeat business down the road.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

In June of 2019 I launched a travel company…9 months before the world shut down. I had already been planning travel for 4 years at that point so our agency venture was still new. But we had business on the books and in March of 2020, everything changed.

The theme parks were closed for the first time, cruises were cancelled and borders were not looking like they would be reopened for sometime. Enter panic mode in the travel industry.

During this time, advisors were undoing all of their hard work by cancelling trips, fighting for refunds for clients and pushing travels out further in hopes of normalcy, but everything was so unknown. Our income was zero since no one was traveling and commissions were not coming in.

As a new travel agency and having a new small team at the time, I felt a responsibility to maintain positivity and ‘get to work’ attitude. I showed up LIVE on social media every week with travel inspiration, trivia nights, etc to help our followers and agents keep that gleam of hope of normalcy.

We continued our team trainings with our suppliers and in house. Fast forward and our “new normal” was here. We were pivoting to the places our clients could go.

Looking back it was probably the best test of a new travel business one could have. We are now back to pre-pandemic sales and continue to grow. Lessons were learned and I feel has only made us stronger when facing adversity.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.briarandmain.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/briarandmaintravelboutique
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/briarandmaintravelboutique

Image Credits
Mandy Rena Photography Flytogapher