THE HUB Social Network was recognized by Business Insider as one of ten companies included on an inaugural list of changemakers in the travel industry, the Milwaukee-based startup announced.
THE HUB launched in August as a private worldwide social media platform designed to bring travel industry advisors and suppliers together as a community to address COVID-19 disruption.
In addition to The HUB, the list features industry giants like Delta Airlines, TripAdvisor, Airbnb and more. Business Insider recognized THE HUB as a company that “anticipated changing traveler needs and has either pivoted their business or created a new one to adapt to the new normal,” according to a press release.
THE HUB was founded by long-time travel industry executive Tom Brussow and small business platform consultant Pat Miller. Brussow, who is also president and chief executive officer of Pewaukee-based travel agency Sensational Beach Vacations, said his search for support during COVID-19 led him to start THE HUB.
“When the COVID crisis hit my travel agency business, I began looking for a community to get support and the information that I needed,” Brussow said in a statement. “I realized that it was not just me, but the entire travel industry, who was in dire need of information, connectivity, and support.”
The principal aim of THE HUB is to bring the travel industry together under one roof with a comprehensive suite of business tools, peer to peer collaboration and programming not found on traditional social media platforms.
In addition to other tools, THE HUB offers “Path to Prosperity,” a weekly brainstorming series that focuses on rebuilding consumer confidence and leveraging collective knowledge and creative ideas.
“Our programming has guests live from around the world and leading agents working together to save their businesses. The travel industry WILL come back, and we are committed to help everyone be ready when it does,” Miller said in a statement.
Brussow says THE HUB now has hundreds of members, but he expects the social media platform to gain traction in the coming months.
“We think with the way things are going, if we could make it to the 500 to 1,000 range (members), that would be really good,” Brussow said. “That’s what we aspire to coming out of the gate.”
