Collette’s Dan Sullivan: Despite COVID-19 Impact, ‘Love for Travel Never Fades’
by Daniel McCarthy /
COVID-19 changed not just the travel industry, but the whole world in what seemed like an instant—challenging people’s health and the world’s healthcare system, confining so many to their homes, and distancing us all from each other.
But that won’t last. A future where we’re spending time packing clothes and tucking them into a suitcase will come, no matter how distant it seems right now.
That’s according to Dan Sullivan, the longtime CEO of Collette.
In a letter posted on Collette’s website, Sullivan addressed the current COVID-19 pandemic, writing that it “seems as if in a blink of an eye, everything changed.”
“For so many of us our everyday is far from ordinary as we stay home and do our part to help the world heal,” he wrote.
Sullivan, an industry veteran of more than four decades, recognizes that the world has changed, and very well may change permanently because of this pandemic, but it doesn’t have to all be bad.
“Right now, we all are keeping a greater physical distance, but emotionally, we’re coming closer together. We’re seeing it manifest in so many ways—from video chats with friends to daily check-in texts, nightly dinners with our families to sharing similar struggles online with others all around the world.”
“Having all shared this same situation, we hope to find a more empathetic and more engaged world, creating more profound connections in every aspect of our life,” he wrote.
The future where we will “pick out our favorite clothes and tuck them neatly in our suitcase” will come soon enough, he wrote.
“Soon enough we will eagerly sit on the tarmac, ready to jet off to a new destination. We will step foot in new places and feel the energy of a new adventure. Travel will be back.”
Sullivan says Collette, which has been in business for over 100 years, will continue to support its travel advisor programs the best it can throughout this pandemic.
“We support our travel professionals and their unique challenges,” he wrote. “In whatever shape or form it may take, we promise Collette will be here for YOU—now and always.
“We encourage you to recall special moments you’ve had with traveling and talk about future plans. Share these stories with friends, family, and the countless communities of travelers online. Let’s look fondly on our past with a hopefully eye toward the future.”