Travel Weekly: Religious travel guru starts consulting firm

http://www.religiousmarketconsulting.com/travel_weekly_121106.pdf

TRAVEL WEEKLY

Religious travel guru leaves Globus to start consulting firm (12/11/2006)
By David Cogswell

With the market for religion-focused tour products growing, Globus' religious travel manager has left the company to start his own consulting company.

Kevin Wright, who had been the religious travel manager for Globus and is the author of books on religious pilgrimages, has started his own company, Religious Market Consulting, based Littleton, Colo.

Wright will continue to work with Globus on its religious travel programs but will also consult other companies.

In 2004, Wright persuaded Globus to start a separate division for religious travel, based on the U.S. Office of Travel and Tourism's estimate that 600,000 Americans travel overseas every year for religious purposes, making religious travel a $1 billion market.

The move was so successful, according to Globus, that its religious travel business has tripled every year since the division was launched.

"It's not just a niche market," Wright said. "It's an industry."

Wright intends to expand beyond travel to the broader market of religion-focused products.

Wright also plans to launch the World Religious Travel Association in January, which he claims will be the first trade association for the religious travel market.

Globus held the first national religious travel symposium in 2005, which attracted 125 travel agents and tourism professionals. In 2006, Globus held four religious travel symposia.

Wright will be president of Religious Market Consulting and will employ three consultants: Honnie Korngold, founder and president of Christian Travel Finder; James Wright, former president and CEO of the Space Needle Corp.; and Christine Moore, founder and principal of Epiphany Media.

Globus executives were not surprised that the entrepreneurially minded Wright outgrew his job description at Globus.

"He was not the typical employee," said Globus COO Scott Nisbet. "He's got some book deals he's working on and other big plans in the growing market of religious travel. We have him engaged with us. He's going to be doing some speaking tours for us, helping to develop our products and our new tours."

To contact reporter David Cogswell, send e-mail to dcogswell@travelweekly.com.