10 Years of “Operation Vetrepreneur: Become Your Own General”
Meet 2019 Winner Christo Robinson
To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the “Operation Vetrepreneur: Become Your Own General” business plan contest, Dream Vacations is highlighting one winner from each of the past 10 years.
Navy Veteran Christo Robinson has always been the go-to guy for friends and family when it comes to planning vacations. When he decided it was time to go into business for himself, he knew he wanted to open a travel agency franchise. In 2018, Christo’s dream became reality when he won the 7th annual Operation Vetrepreneur: Become Your Own General contest. Here’s a brief Q&A with Christo.
1. Why did you enter the Operation Vetrepreneur: Become Your Own General contest?
I entered the contest because I was thinking about opening my own business and I love to travel. Everybody always asked me questions about traveling, so I did my research and learned that Dream Vacations was a veteran-friendly organization that offered a lot of perks, free training, no franchise fee for contest winners, and the ability to travel at a discounted rate.
2. What do you like best about owning a Dream Vacations travel agency franchise?
I love that they really care about my success as a franchise owner. Being in charge of my own business and having the ability to grow it how I want, and on my own time, is very important to me. The headquarters team is there every step of the way to make sure franchisees are successful. At the end of the day, the Dream Vacations team cares about our success.
3. What is the best part about the support you get from Dream Vacations?
Conditions in the travel industry are always changing and Dream Vacations helps you as changes come your way. They host webinars, regional trainings, national conferences, and summits throughout the year to keep franchisees up to date with what is going on in the travel industry. They are always extremely supportive because they truly care about their franchise owners and their employees.
4. How do your military skills translate into franchise ownership?
My communications and ability to speak about the places I have visited, whether from personal vacations or places I was stationed around the world, has helped me tremendously when I speak to clients about booking their vacations.
5. What’s your dream vacation?
My dream vacation is to take a 180-day World Cruise.
