We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Sydney Kendrick. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Sydney below.
Sydney, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?
Hi! I am so excited to be sharing my story with you! My name is Sydney and I run my own business as a Travel Advisor! With the flexibility of being an independent agent, I get to determine how I use my time to have a positive impact. I chose to focus my time and energy on assisting people to check off their bucket list destinations in hopes it cultivates a respect for the world we live in. Travel has the power to broaden perspectives and encourage empathy for others. In my experience and that of my clients, I have heard so many stories about coming back from a trip with a new outlook on different cultures and the openness to try new things. Travel is what connects the world – literally and figuratively.
I work to help anyone and everyone experience as much of the world as they can. Experiencing different countries and cultures is the best way to appreciate the world we live in.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
My name is Sydney and I work for Carlisle Travel as an Independent Travel Advisor! I help people research and book vacations and events! My main objective is to help people experience new cultures and landscapes in hopes there is an appreciation for others and this world.
I got into this industry through years of traveling myself and diligence. I had plans to work in the arts when Covid appeared and had to come up with a plan B. I worked seasonal, outdoor adventure jobs for a couple years including as an obstacle course guide, ski ticket sales representative, kayak guide and axe throwing coach. I have always loved traveling and adored the opportunity to experience different states, seasons and landscapes. I traveled through 15 National Parks and 19 states. I wanted to continue to travel, but to the places on my bucket list rather than where a job was. So I looked into travel industry opportunities, applied to 150+ and found an agency that aligned with what I was looking for! Since starting last year, I have booked over 100 clients throughout the United States as well as 15+ countries – and personally traveled to 15 more National Parks.
The industry has changed so much over the past years that I routinely hear “are travel agents even a thing anymore?”. To that I always answer that, yes they do still exist and are actually becoming increasingly popular as people want to travel more but have less time to plan it themselves. Every agent is different and I pride myself on the knowledgeable and timely service I am able to provide for my clients throughout the entire process. Many agents will only help with booking a trip, but I make a point to stay with each of my clients throughout the entirety of the planning process as well as when they are away. Traveling can be stressful and I like to take a bit of that stress away by offering to help answer any questions, provide recommendations or do my best to solve problems that arise with the bookings I have made until they get home.
I strive to provide the best service and help as many people as possible!
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
I had studied Theatre Performance for 10+ years with the hopes to work in the industry full time. When Covid shut down the world, I needed to pivot in a huge way. Theatre and the arts were put on hold for an undetermined amount of time and I needed to come up with a new plan. After traveling and working seasonal, outdoor recreation jobs I discovered I had a passion for traveling and helping others see new places. I took a while to apply to many different jobs and find one that fit all of my criteria and also one I was excited about.
We’d love to hear about how you keep in touch with clients.
I utilize our agency’s CRM to it’s utmost abilities to stay in contact with previous clients as well as managing my current clients. Before I had the opportunity to use it, I created a version on my own that allowed me to stay in touch with clients, schedule out meetings as well as automatically reach out to clients for future communications. Life happens to all of us, but I have found with a bit of preplanning, I have been successful with staying in touch with clients. 
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.travelleaders.com/agent/248982
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/travel.with.sydney/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sydney-kendrick/
Image Credits
Karlee Fottler Tomas Huntley Sydney Kendrick Sydney Kendrick Michael Clendenin Sydney Kendrick