As travel industry expert Amy Ogden watched hotels around the world pause their operations during COVID-19, she knew that it was critical for their businesses to receive support now so that they could continue operating in the future. Ogden called her longtime friend and hospitality branding expert, Wade Breitzke, and together, the two launched a new website, We Travel Forward—an online directory of hotel gift cards and experiences that guests can purchase now and redeem later after travel restrictions are lifted and hotels re-open their doors.
“Consumers needed to know about the importance of supporting the hotels today that will be the settings for their travels tomorrow,” said Breitzke, who is president and founding partner of We Create Media. “The hotels need our global support now.”
Hotels can list links to gift cards, special offers, and landing pages on the open-source directory, directing consumers to their own websites and booking platforms. We Travel Forward is not commissionable or paid in any way, Breitzke notes. “Right now, the site is focusing on U.S. hotels with goals to expand internationally over time,” Breitzke added.
Breitzke said that once several hotels have joined, the directory will go live and We Travel Forward will promote the website and its mission to consumers.
“Simply put, we love hotels and travel,” Breitzke said. “We can’t imagine our lives or our businesses without them and we wanted to do this as a goodwill project to support the industry we love so much. We have one singular goal, which is to promote We Travel Forward to the public and encourage them to support hotels today.”
