Today we’d like to introduce you to Kasey Pattillo.
Hi Kasey; thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, you could tell our readers some of your backstories.
When I was little, I remember my mom was always taking us somewhere. My love for travel stemmed from that into what it is today. I was not always in the Travel business, but it was always in me. I first went to school for Cosmetology and worked in the business for about 20 years. Most of that time, I was a salon owner. It filled me day after day, but I knew something was missing. Even as a busy stylist, I always had time for a Vacation, whether on a cruise or running away with my inner child to Disney. I love exploring, discovering new places, and meeting new people who I like to consider friends. To support my travel habits, I decided to see if somehow I could be a Travel Agent from home part-time. To my surprise I could and I did. I started as a part-time agent in 2013 for an agency with several hundred agents and growing. It was an amazing opportunity, and I learned so much so fast. I found myself drifting away from my hair and doing more and more travel. The agency I started with was great, but I could do something different and knew I wanted my own agency. I knew I could not stay in hair forever, standing 14 hours a day, some weeks 7 days a week. I needed something I was passionate about that could give me a stable life. After what seemed like forever, but in reality over a year to get approved to open an agency and be accredited by a prominent accreditation company, IATA. After sending in my book of applications with all the requests I waited. This was the nail-biting part to see if I would have my agency. It took a week, and I got the best news: I was officially licensed to have my agency. Now comes the fun part of what I do now. I had to figure out a name to turn in for approval. I just came to a halt. I racked my brain day in and out and still was not coming up with a name I got excited about. One day, I was sitting on the floor in my living room with all my business ideas and papers everywhere when a Carnival cruise commercial came on and said, “discover the magic of a cruise today’, and It caught my attention. A few commercials later, a Sandals commercial said, “Discover the magic of the Caribbean today with our resorts. That is when I knew, Discover the Magic Vacations was officially named.
Although many people think we have that name because we book Disney, it came from those two very different commercials. I booked my very first trip under my agency that same week. Knowing that I had to build before just dropping my career with hair. I worked it full throttle and began hiring agents. Fast forward to three years later, and I finally decided to let go of my salon and focus on travel full time. This was very emotional for me. I was a young single mother when I first started that career in hair. It helped me overcome many things people did not think I could. I had a stylist at the time working for me who always dreamed of having her very own salon, but always said it would probably never happen. So after deep prayer, I decided to help someone else with their dreams. Instead of selling my salon, I gave it to my employee as her very own. It was great to hand something off like that to help someone else achieve goals they never thought possible. To my disappointment, the employee was not who I thought, but that is a whole other story that should be on lifetime as a special. I was out of the salon and have had a blast working and building my agency to what it is today. We are at 150 agents around the US and growing. We are an authorized Disney Vacation Planning company backed by major travel suppliers like Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Disney, Sandals, and more. I have discovered so many wonderful things one destination at a time and have enjoyed selling something that brings joy into lives. I finally discovered where I was supposed to be.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been smooth?
Smooth? I believe everything we want is challenging to get. Just the application process to be accredited as an agency was tough. Opening my salon with the state board on my tail was hard, but opening and getting accredited as a Travel Agency was harder than I ever anticipated. Worth it in the end, and I never stopped learning new things about this business every day. Also, trying to work two full-time jobs while building the agency but still needing the support of the salon takes work. All the while still trying to be a wife and a mother. The pressure builds and sometimes seems too heavy, but I made it through. Hard work truly does pay off in the end.
We’ve been impressed with Discover the Magic Vacations, LLC, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Our company was built on a strong foundation from a passion for travel and helping others discover their happy place worldwide. We offer complimentary vacation travel services at no extra cost to the client. All of our agents have the training necessary to help plan the best vacation to ensure that you get competitive pricing at reputable resorts to fit your personal needs. Our Disney specialists are graduates from the College of Disney Knowledge and have first-hand experience to ensure you get the most out of your vacation. There are hundreds of different ways to discover the world, and we can help narrow that down to what fits you and your travel style the best.
Whether you need a family vacation, romantic getaway, destination wedding, or to escape everyday life, Discover the Magic Vacations is here to help. Start your vacation from the start by allowing us to do the work of research and planning your next vacation. We are your personal concierge to the world, so where will you discover today?
We all have different ways of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
I would define success as continuously moving forward. It is not always about getting it right but about what you do when you get it wrong and how you do it. Success is also encouraging others to keep moving forward when they fall. Success is getting up when you fall, period!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.discoverthemagicvacations.com
- Instagram: @discoverthemagicvacations
- Facebook: @discoverthemagicvacations
- Other: DTMVacations on TIKTOK
Image Credits
Canva Disney Castle
