NEST is American Marketing Group's (AMG) marketing group dedicated only to home-based travel agencies. Today, the network has 500 agencies and continues to grow; so far this year, it has added 27 members whose annual sales total $78 million.
But when it first started, NEST grew slowly. That wasn't from lack of demand, though. Despite receiving 1,000 applications in April 2004, its first month in operation, NEST only admitted 100 agencies based on its membership standards.
"A sizable number of the original members from that first year are still with NEST today," the company said.
Michelle Bouzek, owner of Vacations in Paradise in Austin, Texas, is one of them. Bouzek's agency has been a member from the beginning.
"I've stayed with NEST for all these years because of the incredible support and opportunities they've provided me and my business," she said.
NEST was born to meet a growing demand at the time: Agencies were closing storefronts and moving home thanks to technology that meant they could work from anywhere with Internet access.
"We knew we needed to start a new network as a lifeline connecting home-based advisors and suppliers," NEST president Kathryn Mazza-Burney said.
In the lead-up to NEST's launch, AMG considered several different names for the network, Splash and Wave among them.
It used a 12-stop "road show," the "Success Series," to recruit agencies.
NEST's first conference was held in Las Vegas in 2005.
Wayne Spector, NEST's recently promoted senior vice president, said the network's success can be attributed to the fact that "it has stayed true to its core values" of championing home-based advisors.
Agencies can join NEST by invitation only. They must be independent, booking directly with suppliers as opposed to through a host. Agencies must also have a minimum level of sales with NEST's preferred suppliers.
As part of their membership, agencies receive dedicated help from a business analyst. NEST also pays 100% commission to advisors and offers profit-sharing opportunities, among other benefits.
