FBR Issue 2 - 2019

FBR SPECIAL REPORT
Featured, Low-Cost, Award-Winning Brand
The Heart of a Travel Agent,
the Drive of a CEO
How Michelle Fee Built the Cruise Planners Franchise
In the age of the internet, you might be wondering
why anyone would ever use a travel
agent. And you wouldn’t be alone in your
pondering. Michelle Fee, founder and CEO of
Cruise Planners, gets this question a lot. Her
response? “Why spend four weeks booking a
four-day vacation when you could have someone
who could do this all for you and advocate
on your behalf, all at no cost to you? Our travel
agents have access to information that travelers
don’t.”
The cruising industry has seen growth each
year for the last 30 years, with double-digit
growth during the last 10 years. Land-based
vacations and all-inclusive resorts are at an alltime
high with record-breaking volume. There
is no question that the internet has provided
more opportunities for direct-to-consumer
sales, but it has also created an enormous
opportunity for agents. That’s because the
internet got too big. If you Google “cruise vacation,”
you’ll see there are more than 4,000,000
results. For consumers, this abundant choice
can be completely overwhelming and has
resulted in a boom for the travel agency space.
THE BIRTH OF THE
CRUISE PLANNERS FRANCHISE
When the internet was just in its infancy,
Fee was the co-owner of a small “mom and
mom” business in Coral Springs, Fla. As she
witnessed the arrival of the internet, she realized
they needed to change the way they did
business if they were going to survive. In 1994,
Fee and her two business partners developed
a business plan and incorporated. A year later,
in 1995, they launched the first Cruise Planners
new agent training class. By 2000, the trio
identified the need to move away from the
independent contractor model they had been
relying on and began franchising.
“When I started the business, I was scared.
I was putting my family on the line,” says Fee.
Michelle Fee at Machu Picchu with Cruise Planners top producing travel advisors and travel partners as part of the
Elite Summit trip
“I had to invest money into the business and I
had two small children. But, I did it and never
looked back.”
One of the greatest benefits of the Cruise
Planners business model is the ability it offers
franchisees to work remotely—from home
or anywhere in the world. But 25 years ago,
working from home was not accepted like it
is today. Initially, this was an obstacle for Fee.
“It took a few years to get the concept widespread,”
she said. “Nobody worked from home
25 years ago. Today, it is totally different.”
This forward-looking attitude and ability to
adapt coupled with the belief that consistency
is key has allowed Fee and her team to create a
multi-million-dollar franchise system offering
franchisees both an income stream and the
freedom to create the life they desire.
“I’m really proud of what we built. Franchisees
can take this business to whatever level
they want to take it to,” explained Fee. “Some
are stay-at-home moms, others are retirees,
and others have turned this franchise into
something way more than I ever expected,
making high into the six-figures.”
Franchisees are offered the support of the
corporate office as well as from the nationwide
community of Cruise Planners franchisees.
This support is one of the reasons so many are
attracted to franchising. Similarly, Fee credits
her ability to raise two young children and a
new business, to her “village of support.”
“I could not have done this without my
parents,” she remarked. “And my husband was
extremely supportive. As a mother, you have
this guilt—and you can never go back. I made
sure that all my kids’ important events were on
my calendar. Today, I can look back knowing
that I didn’t miss a dance recital or a wrestling
match; I didn’t miss anything.”
Over the past 25 years, Fee has built a
business that offers other mothers and fathers
the same opportunity she created for herself
over two decades ago; allowing people the
14 | For more information on the companies in this report, visit www.FranchiseBusinessReview.com