Company announces 30 percent of franchise network is comprised of military veterans and spouses at annual awards ceremony featuring government officials
Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (October 14, 2014) – Nationally recognized military-friendly cruise franchise CruiseOne®, which is part of World Travel Holdings, the world’s largest cruise agency and award-winning leisure travel company, recently celebrated military veterans and their spouses at its third annual “Operation Vetrepreneur: Become Your Own General” awards ceremony. In addition to awarding free travel franchises each valued at $12,700 to five deserving U.S. military veterans, for a total value of $63,500, the company announced that it exceeded its 2014 military recruitment goals.
Thirty percent of CruiseOne’s franchise network is now military veterans or active-duty spouses, which not only exceeds the company’s recruitment goal by 5 percent, but also was achieved three months ahead of schedule.
“CruiseOne has always had a vested interest in supporting military veterans and military spouses who have given so much for our country,” said Tim Courtney, CFE, vice president of franchise development and ambassador of veteran affairs for CruiseOne. “Through the Operation Vetrepreneur contest, we are able to give back while providing veterans the opportunity for a balanced lifestyle where they have business and family under one roof without the commute.”
The annual “Operation Vetrepreneur: Become Your Own General” contest was open to former members of any of the five branches of the U.S. military (Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and Coast Guard) who are retired, off active duty and/or honorably discharged prior to the contest start date this past May. Candidates participated in a rigorous three-part application process which included creating a business plan and phone interviews. Nearly 150 applicants from 30 different states submitted applications for “Operation Vetrepreneur.” This year’s winners included Army and National Guard Veteran Tammy Duffield of Shreveport, La.; Navy Veteran Marci DeWitt of Delaware, Ohio; Navy and Air Force Veterans Craig and Ingrid Markham of Silverdale, Wash.; and United States Marine Corps Veteran Conrad Carpenter of Charleston, W.Va.
The winners are attending a weeklong training at CruiseOne’s world headquarters in Fort Lauderdale and were honored with a special ceremony featuring city, state and county officials.
A member of the International Franchise Association’s (IFA) VetFran initiative, CruiseOne proudly supports military veterans and is consistently recognized by leading industry publications as a military-friendly franchise. CruiseOne’s accolades include a number one ranking by Military Times in its “Best for Vets: Franchises” and by Forbes in its “Top 10 Military Friendly Franchise.” The company also has been included on USA Today’s “50 Top Franchises for Military Veterans” and recognition as a “Top Veteran-Friendly Franchise” by Entrepreneur and U.S. Veterans magazines. For the past four years, CruiseOne was named to G.I. Jobs magazine’s Military Friendly Franchises® lists, which represents the top 10 percent of the nation’s franchises that are doing the most to support military veterans.
People with a passion for travel who want to learn more information about joining CruiseOne and Operation Vetrepreneur, please visit www.CruiseOneFranchise.com or call 888-249-8235.
Photo Cutline (Left to Right):
Front Row: Debbie Fiorino, Senior
Vice President of CruiseOne; Air Force Veteran Ingrid
Markham; Army and National Guard Veteran Tammy
Duffield; Navy Veteran Marci Dewitt;
Tim Courtney, CFE, Vice President of Franchise
Development and Ambassador of Veteran Affairs for CruiseOne.
Back Row: Navy Veteran Craig
Markham and United States Marine Corps Veteran
Conrad Carpenter.
About CruiseOne®
Celebrating 22 years in business, the home-based travel franchise CruiseOne® is ranked in the top one percent of all franchises worldwide and is a member of the International Franchise Association. As part of World Travel Holdings, the world’s largest cruise agency and award-winning leisure travel company, CruiseOne franchisees are able to offer their customers the lowest possible pricing on vacations with its 100 percent “Best Price and Satisfaction Guarantee.” CruiseOne has received partner of the year, a top-ranking status, by all the major cruise lines including Norwegian Cruise Line®, Royal Caribbean International®, Celebrity Cruises® and Carnival® Cruise Line. For more information on CruiseOne, visit www.CruiseOneFranchise.com. Like CruiseOne on Facebook at www.facebook.com/CruiseOneFranchise, and follow us on Twitter at @CruiseOneBiz.
