Senior Business Development Manager - Travel Advisor Relations

Company: American Classic Tours

Location: Chicago, IL

Position Type: Full-Time

Reports To: Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

About American Classic Tours

Family-owned and operated since 1988, American Classic Tours was founded by Joe Conroy out of a lifelong passion for history, nature, and exploring America. Now in its second generation of family leadership, the company has grown into an established name offering premium, all-inclusive tour experiences across North America and, more recently, Europe — built on decades of loyal customer relationships and a reputation earned through word of mouth rather than big marketing budgets. As American Classic Tours enters its next chapter of growth, this role offers the chance to help build a trade channel worthy of that legacy.

Position Overview

Are you a seasoned travel industry professional ready to take ownership of a brand-new growth channel? American Classic Tours is seeking a Senior Business Development Manager to stand up, lead, and scale our first-ever Travel Advisor Relations Program.

This is a rare opportunity to join a respected, family-owned travel business at a pivotal moment of growth. Reporting directly to the CEO, you will operate with a high degree of autonomy, setting the strategy, building the trade channel from the ground up, and executing the day-to-day work of turning relationships into revenue. You'll have the runway to shape how this program is built, and as it grows, the opportunity to lead or manage a team supporting it. This role suits someone who is equally comfortable thinking strategically and rolling up their sleeves, a builder who wants to leave a lasting mark on a company that feels personally invested in its people and its partners.

Key Responsibilities

Trade Channel Strategy & Setup

• Take the lead in designing and standing up our travel advisor and trade partner program from scratch, working directly with the CEO to align it with company goals.
• Define the structure for advisor incentives, commission arrangements, preferred partner agreements, and educational programming (FAM trips, webinars, training sessions).
• Set KPIs to track program performance and ROI, adjusting approach based on results and market feedback.

Relationship Management & Sales Growth

• Proactively identify, prospect, and secure partnerships with independent travel advisors, host agencies, and consortia, drawing on your existing industry network.
• Serve as the face of American Classic Tours to the trade community, building trust, educating advisors on our itineraries, and driving them to sell with confidence.
• Own account management for the advisor network: provide ongoing support, training, and marketing tools that keep partners engaged and closing sales.

Leadership & Team Capacity

• Operate independently as the program's sole owner initially, with the opportunity to lead or manage additional team members as the channel scales.
• Partner with internal teams (marketing, product) to develop advisor-facing collateral, sales toolkits, and communications.
• Represent American Classic Tours at trade shows, conferences, and industry events, building the company's presence and reputation in the B2B travel space.

Reporting & Insights

• Maintain rigorous CRM discipline to track leads, pipeline, and advisor performance.
• Report regularly to the CEO on program progress, wins, and opportunities, and feed advisor insights back into product and pricing decisions.

Requirements & Qualifications

• Experience: 8+ years of business development, sales, or account management experience within the travel and tourism industry, with direct experience working with travel advisors, host agencies, or consortia.
• Industry Network: An active, well-established network of travel advisors and trade relationships is highly preferred, you should be able to hit the ground running.
• Autonomy & Ownership: A proven self-starter who thrives building something from the ground up with minimal oversight, while staying aligned with leadership's vision.
• Leadership Readiness: Experience leading or managing teams is a plus, along with the ambition and capability to grow into a people-leadership role as the department expands.
• Communication Skills: Excellent sales, presentation, and interpersonal skills you connect easily, present confidently to groups, and negotiate effectively.
• Tech Proficiency: Comfortable with CRM systems and virtual meeting tools to manage pipeline and reporting.
• Passion for Travel: A genuine enthusiasm for the travel industry and a desire to help grow a respected family business into its next chapter.
• Travel: Willingness to travel for advisor visits, trade shows, and industry events (estimated 25% travel).

What We Offer

• Competitive base salary with a performance-driven bonus/commission structure.
• Comprehensive benefits package (health, dental, vision, 401k matching).
• 15 days of paid time off (PTO) annually, plus standard paid company holidays.
• Flexible work options: We thrive when collaborating together in our Chicago office, but we’re fully set up to support hybrid and remote setups. For the right candidate outside the Chicago area who is unable to relocate, remote or hybrid arrangements are certainly on the table.
• Opportunities to travel, including industry FAM (familiarization) trips and destination immersions to keep you connected to the experiences we offer.
• Direct access to and partnership with executive leadership with real influence over strategy.
• A ground-floor opportunity to build a critical revenue channel and grow into leading a team as it scales.

Contact Information

americanclassictours.com

JD Conroy, Vice President

847-548-3333

[email protected]