Phyllis Stoller

Founder, Women’s Travel Club
www.womenstravelclub.com

Phyllis Stoller wanted to see the world, but didn’t want to do it alone, so she started The Women’s Travel Club by planning a trip for a few ladies to London. That was in 1992.

Since then, Stoller estimates she has visited more than 75 destinations with the club, which now counts about 950 women as members and leads 25-30 trips each year to places like Provence, Tuscany, Ireland and Mexico.

Stoller is often quoted by journalists as an expert on women’s travel – her club has appeared in more than 100 magazines and newspapers like The Miami Herald, The New York Times, Travel and Leisure and USA Today. Below she shares her picks for the “Top Four Trips to Take In Your Lifetime.”

Going to Exotic Places In My Mind

“My father started life as a traveling salesman in the 1930’s and he therefore hated to travel, except to play golf. My mother was afraid of flying until later in life. Travel was definitely not a family thing. But I always loved travel. When I was a kid, I used to sit in the public library and read books by Rudyard Kipling and other books about exotic places. There’s something in your blood that wants you to see something new.”

Many Travel Opportunities…

“When I was 14, I asked my parents if I could go abroad – some other girls were going, so I went to school in Switzerland. (Later) I lived in London for 10 years. In 1980, (my husband and I) moved to Miami, where I went to work as a banker and became a vice-president. A VP has five weeks vacation, but my husband would never take more than two weeks off. He was a stockbroker and it was hard for him to get away for extended periods.”

… But Few Constant Companions

“In the meantime, I had full-time help for my children because I traveled extensively with the bank. (My husband) would say, ‘I know you miss Europe. I know you miss your friends. Why don’t you go?’ But I don’t like traveling alone. Over the years, I would meet women and invite them on trips. They would always say, ‘I don’t have the money,’ or ‘I don’t have the time,’ or, ‘How can you go without your husband?’”

Market Opportunity Knocks

“I thought to myself that I could not be the only woman on the face of the earth who had the income, had the time and wanted to travel. I started seriously investigating what it would take to start a travel company – insurance, incorporation, that kind of thing. Because I was a corporate banker, I had access to people who were able to put me in touch with high-producing travel agents. I interviewed as many of them as I could.”

“I asked them, ‘What do you do with women like me?’ They said, ‘We go to a spa.’ I like spas, but want to also do other things. I realized there was a niche that no one else was covering.”

Start-Up Costs

“I made up a brochure for a trip to London and sent it to 400 or so women – everyone from the school to the neighborhood crime watch, anyone I could think of. My initial costs for funding the business… incorporation, insurance and the brochure, were probably less than $10,000, plus I had to post a bond with the state of Florida, which at the time was $25,000.”

Making the Right Connections

“Then came a quick breakthrough for me. Someone who was the head of the South Florida American Society of Travel Agents called me up and said, ‘You’re on to something. We want to help you.’ He was the head of marketing for a large travel agency in South Florida. He helped me with the second trip and helped me get into the newspaper.”

Getting the Word Out

“In 1992, I came up with idea of writing a newsletter. I sent it to my list of 400 people and wrote little articles about travel. People started subscribing to the newsletter and it broke even in its first year of business.”

“Most travel agents were not interested in selling my trips because they didn’t know who I was, so I had to go directly to the end-user, either women travelers or travel writers. Most travel writers are women. They have to travel alone a lot and completely understood what I was saying.”

“Anytime (a journalist) writes about women and travel, we send them a package about The Women’s Travel Club. For about six months (in 1998), myself and my assistant tried to find Web sites that were women-friendly, and we would ask them, ‘Would you link to us?’ I would guess we made over a 1000 phone calls. That got our name all over the Internet.”

Greatest Success

“I think we’re somewhat responsible for putting (women’s travel) on the map. This year it’s hot. The travel expos all have segments on women’s travel. The New York Times just did an article. USA Today just did an article. It’s reaching recognition by the travel industry.”

Greatest Challenge

“Understanding that if you’re going to start something, you have to be flexible. If Concept A needs to be diverted to Concept A/B, then do it. Don’t sit on it and insist that what you’re doing is right. I was going to do trips to London only, but people said they wanted something else. That was hard for me. I was a banker with a rigid background and thought, ‘This is how you do things.’ But there are lots of ways of doing things. You just have to open your mind a bit.”

Words of Advice

“A couple things my husband said to me, first of all, he said, ‘If you have a good product, then (your business) is a numbers game and the more you reach out, the better chance you have of success.’ The second thing… sometimes when someone would be not so nice on the phone, I would get upset. He said, ‘Business is not a popularity contest; it’s about reaching goals. Women want everyone to like them. Don’t be unlikable, but focus on the goal.’”

Top Four Trips to Take In Your Lifetime

“India. Because you step back in time 2000 years on every sensual level.”

“Egypt. Because it’s the birthplace of Western civilization and you feel it when you’re there.”

“A safari. It’s like a reverse zoo. You’re the minority as a human being, with thousands of animals around you. It’s a provocative feeling.”

“China. Because I think that all Americans should be aware of the vastness and potential power of China, and most Americans are not.”