The news of long-time Tzell Travel Group agent Rina Anoussi's death has left many in the industry reeling, and for good reason.
As her friends and colleagues tell it, the intrepid and sophisticated agent was truly one of a kind. "She was a big player," said Martin Gould of The Travel Business, a Tzell affiliate, who added that Anoussi was completely self-made. "Nobody handed her a thing," he said, "and she started without any experience. So she was quite remarkable."
Gould, who worked with Anoussi for nearly 28 years, said she was most decidedly a force to be reckoned with. "The first thing was her indefatigable drive. She never tired and she was a huge advocate for her clients," he said. "No was never an option for her. She wouldn't let up. She'd call the general manager. She'd break them down until she got what she wanted for her clients."
Not surprisingly, her well-heeled clients adored her. "Not only did they love her but they listened to every word she said because if they didn't she would chastise them," Gould said. "If Rina said, 'This is the best hotel,' they would just go with her every time on her suggestion."
In many cases, clients became friends. "Although she would always say, 'I'm a service provider' - that was her line - she really inhabited the world of her clients," said Gould, adding that many of them came from the upper echelons of the art world.
Anoussi was equally revered by the suppliers with whom she cultivated strong relationships. "Over the years Rina developed amazing relationships with all the major hoteliers, general managers and directors of sales around the world," Gould said. "Our clients always got preferential treatment because of her relationships with these people."
[BLURB]"I've heard amazing tributes to her from travel agents that competed with her from other agencies." - Martin Gould[/BLURB]
Her travel agent colleagues also held in the highest regard. "I've heard amazing tributes to her from travel agents that competed with her from other agencies," Gould said.
For Gould, Anoussi served as a mentor. "She taught me a lot about bespoke luxury travel," he said, adding that during the last eight years the two formed a strong working relationship. "She was the front end of our partnership and I was the back end. She'd be talking to clients and I'd be sitting next to her doing the work of whatever the clients were ordering. We were very much to halves of a whole."
Their relationship extended beyond that of colleagues. "We were extremely close friends and we traveled together as two couples, my partner and I and Rina and her husband," Gould said.
Siobhan Brennan, a corporate travel agent at Tzell, also forged a close bond with Anoussi since Brennan joined Tzell in 2001. "In the busy world of travel, where agents often bypass each other in the corridor, it just so happened that one day we connected and ever since that, I had a tremendous amount of respect and admiration for Rina as a leader in the travel industry," she said.
[BLURB]"She was someone you would look up to and have a deep respect for how she got the job done." - Siobhan Brennan[/BLURB]
Like Gould, Brennan viewed Anoussi as a mentor. "She was someone you would look up to and have a deep respect for how she got the job done," she said. "Her knowledge was so vast and wide, unparalleled to none. I truly believe there is no one else out there in the industry like her."
Brennan said she valued any time that she was able to spend with Anoussi, crediting her with grace, elegance and a sharp business sense. "She was truly amazing," she said. "You would be in awe of how she handled business - it was truly incredible."
Suppliers had a high regard for Anoussi as well. "Rina was such an ambassador for Tzell and the travel industry," said Kristy Poirier, account director, travel industry sales for Four Seasons Hotels.
"She was a huge partner of ours," said Poirier. "She really loved our hotels, wanted to sell our hotels and was also committed to her clients. It was more than a partnership. It was a long marriage."
Poirier reiterated Gould's contention that Anoussi was a fierce advocate for her clients. "She didn't take no for an answer - but whatever she was asking for made sense," she said. "She just was the voice for her clients, and she wanted what was best for them. And she wasn't afraid to ask for it. She would be firm and she would be demanding but you understood where she was coming from."
In Poirier's view, it was a privilege to call Anoussi a friend. "I feel really fortunate that I got close to her," she said, adding that Anoussi was discerning about whom forged friendships with.
[BLURB]"Rina's number one priority was to learn. Everything she did every day was about learning something new." - Kristy Poirier[/BLURB]
A year ago, the two traveled to China together. "Rina's number one priority was to learn," said Poirier. "Everything she did every day was about learning something new."
It was an arduous trip that took in Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou and Hong Kong. Anoussi was unfailingly punctual and expected others to be, said Poirier. "If she didn't like something the guide was doing on a tour, she would say, 'OK, we're done, let's go. Let's learn something else.' She actually ran that trip as much as participated in it."
Taking charge was just an intrinsic part of Anoussi's personality, said Poirier. "That's who she was. You either loved her for it or you didn't."
Poirier also views Anoussi as an industry icon. "She had so many parts to her and I think that's what made her so diverse and worldly," she said. "And she could really deliver for her clients."
In the end, Poirier said she is already feeling Anoussi's absence. "Emails are flowing back and forth since her passing, and every person that has shared their grief and sympathy has said, 'What an icon.' I miss her a lot." On that front, Poirier is hardly alone.
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