Today we’d like to introduce you to Kim Hector
Hi Kim, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I’m originally from Riverdale, GA. My mother is a retired school teacher. So since she had summers off she would make sure that we went on a summer vacation every year. I’m an only child but I grew up with a step brother and cousins. So we would all go on vacation together. We usually went to Panama City Beach, Florida. As I got older, we started going on cruises and flying to the Caribbean. My mother loves to travel and see new places and I began to share that same feeling. I am always the person planning all the trips for my family and friends. I planned a California trip for my friends when we all turned 30. It was eight of us. I am very detailed when I plan things. My family and friends trust me to handle everything. I graduated from UGA with a degree in Accounting. I always worked in the accounting field. Fast forward to 2017, I was working at Home Depot as an accounting supervisor and I managed an offshore team in Chennai, India. I had to travel to India to train my team alongside my manager and senior manager. I had never been anywhere other than the Caribbean at this point. I was 34 years old. I looked at the map to see where I had to go and it was so far from America. I was freaking out but also excited at the same time. We had to fly to Paris first then to Dubai then to India. First leg was eight hours, second leg was six hours and third leg was four hours. Since it was international travel for business we flew business class. However, I got bumped up to first class for one leg on Emirates. When I say AMAZING! I had never seen anything like it. A double decker plane and I was one of six people in the first class pods. We stayed in India for a week and planned to stay in Paris for four days on the way back home. I was able to see all the sites in Paris that I had only seen in pictures. Once I returned from Paris, I told myself that I have so much world to see. My mom had took her first European trip a year prior to me going to India. So the next year, we planned to do a trip together and we went to Rome and Paris. I was able to pay for the whole trip as her Mother’s Day gift. We had an amazing time and promised that we would continue to see the world together. In 2020, a great friend of mine asked me to plan her 40th birthday trip. Mind you, I was still planning trips for everyone or helping people with their travel plans…for free! In 2020, COVID travel was so difficult. The trip was to Aruba. It was 24 people on this trip. So I had to make sure 24 people took Covid tests, paid on their trip, filled out travel forms, made sure they had valid passports, made it to the airport on time, and paid for the excursions. I did all of this for free. After that trip, I decided that I should make money doing this. With my personal passion to travel and knowing that I can manage a group of 24 people to go on an international trip. I said why not! K. Hector Consulting was born. I had never yearned to be an entrepreneur but I stepped out on faith and took a chance. I still have my full time job as an accountant. And now I’m a travel agent. It excites me to be able to plan amazing trips for people and hear them say that it was everything they could dream of! I have booked birthday trips, solo trips, group trips, honeymoons, baby moons and just because trips. I have sent people all over the world. I also have to practice what I preach. Being a travel agent has inspired me to take solo trips and see more of the world as well. I have been to France, Italy, Thailand, Spain, Caribbean, Mexico, Canada and India. I am not done! I am going into my 5th year as a travel agent and I’m so proud of myself for making a business out of something that I truly love. The sky is the limit and the world is my oyster!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Starting a business is never easy. Having to build a clientele is always challenging especially in this industry where everyone is doing it. I always tell myself to just continue to provide the best customer service I can and understand my clients needs. Most people have a misconception that using a travel agent will cost more but it doesn’t. If you use Expedia or Delta Vacations someone is getting paid each time someone books so why not support someone you know who can provide the same services. People also do not understand that a travel agent only gets paid when a trip is completed so anytime a cancellation occurs that is taking planned money away from us. So the road is not always smooth and things happen but you just have to stay positive through it all.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
My professional job is accounting. I have been in the accounting field for over 18 years. I am currently a contractor so I get to work at different companies and learn their systems and help them with different accounting functions when they are short staffed. My most proud moment was creating an inventory app when I worked at Georgia Pacific. The app helped to speed up the inventory count process when we traveled to different vendors sites. I have worked in forensic accounting, inventory accounting, cost accounting and corporate accounting. My experience in the field has helped me to become a great asset for any company that I work for. I’m not your typical accountant. I bring a lot of personality that helps me to build and maintain great business relationships. You would be surprised what you can get people to do if you are just personable and nice.
Any big plans?
My plans for the future is to see more of the world! I also want to start curating small group trips to take people to places they are scared to go to alone. I am always trying to think of different ways to get my clients to see the world.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: Travelwithkhec
