Andy Kirkman joins Bench Africa following a 2-year hiatus from the industry due to COVID. Previously Adventure World Head of Sales, Kirkman has been welcomed into the Bench ‘pride’ to shape and ultimately spearhead the company’s sales strategy as they chart their way forward out of the pandemic with trade partners as their core focus.
Kirkman said, “I’m thrilled to be back, and I’m looking forward to reconnecting with industry partners far and wide to gain a clear understanding of what it is they need from Bench in this new post-COVID landscape to reach a win-win-win for Bench, our agents, and their clients. Of course, the subsequent key milestone is to get a full team of Bench Africa BDMs back out in front of our agents as soon as possible.”
Marketing Director Lara Behrens said, “We are delighted to welcome Andy to the Bench pride. With the significant uptick in demand for international travel, the trade relations role is pivotal to ensuring that our agent partners have all the support they need, now more than ever. Andy’s wealth of experience and relationships with our agent partners will make him a valuable addition to our robust team.”
This news follows two additional appointments earlier in the year. Reservations Consultants, Maria Tropiano and Rachel Grenfell, had previously worked at Bench Africa for 13 years, with 22 years of African travel consultancy experience between them. “It has been invaluable to have these two highly experienced and well-respected team members return to the Bench family. As a result, Bench Africa has recorded substantial growth over the past quarter, and our post-pandemic comeback is advancing even more rapidly than anticipated,” said Julie De Palo, Groups & Operations Manager.
Bench Africa has more exciting news on the horizon so stay tuned!
