Page 77 - BWM Dec 2012

December 2012 | Business World Magazine | 77
UNIGLOBE Travel is a leading provider of travel ser-
vices for business and leisure travellers. They distrib-
ute travel-related products and services through their
websites and physical locations around the world. They are the
world’s largest single-brand travel franchise organization.
UNIGLOBETravel was founded byU. Gary Charlwood in
1980 in Vancouver, British Columbia. Charlwood is a veteran of
many industries, having earned extensive experience with travel,
real estate, tourism, and airline businesses. In 1975 he and a part-
ner bought the master franchise rights for CENTURY 21 Real
Estate Canada. He later bought out his co-founder and has built
CENTURY 21 Canada into one of the largest real estate compa-
nies in the country, with more than 400 locations and more than
8,000 salespeople.
“After five years of running CENTURY 21, he looked back
on the history of the travel industry and saw there would be a
great opportunity for a franchise travel brand. At that time, the
industry wasn’t well-established,” says Vice-President of U.S. Op-
erations and Industry Relations Andrew Henry. “He was a trail-
blazer that really helped get that going.”