Determined Nico Mori refused to allow the Covid-19 pandemic thwart his ambition to succeed in business and provide for his family after he lost his job. And now his drive and ambition has paid off — and the dad-of-one has rekindled his career as an independent travel agent.
Nico’s new role heading up BKS Travel comes after he was made redundant from his job running a restaurant in Canary Wharf, London because of the huge downturn in footfall caused by the coronavirus crisis.
Now, though, he is flourishing once more with BKS Travel – with a wide range of travel options including summer and winter holidays, city breaks, weekend getaways, cruises hotel stays, flights. car hire group bookings, theatre tickets and attractions — and once again he is happy in his work. Nico, who is French but has been living in the UK for over 20 years, is married to Nicky and the couple have a little boy Jake, aged two.
He explains that the move to travel industry was one which was inspired by his love of globe-trotting. But it’s a move that he says he couldn’t have imagined before the pandemic struck. He explained:
“From a very young age, I always knew that being surrounded by food was for me, that I loved looking after people and ensuring they always received the best possible service. I have been lucky enough to work in some of the best restaurants in the country with some amazing chefs up to 2 Michelin star level.”
“I was running a beautiful restaurant in busy Canary Wharf, with an amazing vibe and atmosphere. My work life balance was simply perfect for the arrival of Jake.”
Then, after the changes in employment, the travel bug struck.
“What do you need more than Vitamin D, friends and family? However, Covid-19 came along and decided to shake up our life and my career. After a few months in lockdown and all the bars and restaurant being forced to shut down, it sadly was no longer sustainable for my employer to keep our lovely restaurant open, so myself alongside my entire team, all suffered redundancy.”
Nico says It took a couple of weeks to sink in and a few more days to work out what would be next for him. He added:
“You work so hard and so long to get to the top and then this hits you, so hard, so unfair, but so very real. I’ve always enjoyed travel but also never had the time nor freedom to do it as much as I would have liked.”
“I have also always assimilated hospitality and the travel industry to work hand in hand. Working as an independent travel agent (ITA), allows me to be my own boss, and work as hard or as little as I want. It allows me to work from my home or from actually anywhere with an Internet connection, that could be by the swimming pool or in the hotel bar, pretty much anywhere all over the world.”
Nico believes the new balance of work and life is perfect.
“This also allows me to explore more destinations and build those memories with Jake and Nicky, giving us access to many places we would have only dreamt of going to, or places that never even crossed our minds.”
“Creating BKS Travel and working as an ITA fits my life perfectly and allows me to prioritise, it allows me to give my clients the same VIP service I would have given them when I was in the restaurant, and it allows me to create unforgettable memories for my clients, put a smile on their face. What more could I ask for?”
What more indeed, Nico!
