After unexpected career changes, we wanted to fulfill our dreams of owning a business.
The Korte's Story - Sheila and Chris Korte met in the Army and have been together ever since. With a love for travel and an entrepreneurial spirit, Sheila found the turn-key opportunity she was looking for. Cruise Planners-American Express Travel instantly helped grow her business with its marketing programs, technology, and business development support. Chris even retired and joined her to make what is now a 100% veteran owned-and-operated franchise.
After Chris left the Army, he worked as a civilian air traffic controller while Sheila managed their young family and worked towards and completed an Associates degree in Business. Chris changed careers after he lost his job in the controller’s strike in 1981. He successfully worked as a broker on Wall Street for over 30 years. Sheila was hired by the FAA and worked for 17 years as an Air Traffic Controller. Her career path took a turn after a bad car accident. No longer able work as a controller due to injuries, she decided to fulfill her dreams to complete her college degree in Travel & Tourism with a Marketing Minor.
Sheila initially worked for a travel consortium and then for a travel supplier. Not content in those jobs, she kept searching for a new path, wanting to own her own business. While waiting for her car to be serviced and looking through old magazines on a rack her eye was drawn to a bright green Cruise Planners ad. Both Sheila and Chris agreed that this might be just what she'd been searching for to achieve her dream of working independently in the travel business. Sheila called Cruise Planners the very next day. Within a few days, she was a proud owner of her very own Cruise Planners-American Express franchise.
Chris retired in 2012 from his Wall Street career to join Sheila and has given it an extra boost with his sales and work experience. With hard work, love of travel and people, Cruise Planners has grown to a perfect business for them. They can work while on the road traveling or at their cozy home office. Working with Cruise Planners allows them the flexibility to be able to see their grandchildren regularly and to travel and check off those destinations on their bucket lists. As long as they have a phone, Wifi device & a laptop, Chris and Sheila are able to work their business most anywhere.
