Travel Designers’ James Whitaker-Sheppard secured the sale following a conversation with a fellow guest at the Birmingham Hilton, the night of the TTG Top 50 event in the city last month.

Whitaker-Sheppard was carrying the certificate naming the Balham store as one of the nation’s best travel agencies when it caught the attention of the guest.

Travel Designers’ director Nicholas Harding-McKay told TTG: “As James walked in, a man saw what he was carrying and said ‘you must be a good travel agent then!’ and they just got chatting.”

Harding-McKay said Whitaker-Sheppard was then able to put some recent training into practice.

“The guest told James he was trying to book a holiday to Mexico but hadn’t had any luck with his local travel agents. After having Amanda Darrington and Funway come to see us and do some training recently on how to sell the destination, James was able to use what he had learned to quote him there and then at the bar.”

During the train ride home the next day the Travel Designers pair received a call confirming the booking for a five-person family holiday to Cancun this summer.

“I thought James was joking when he told me what had happened,” Harding-McKay said. “Two drunk guys talking about holidays – I never imagined it would actually lead to a booking. Since he got the call we’ve been working on the booking and now it’s all been confirmed.

“I’ve never actually made money from an entertaining budget before,” he joked. “It might have to become company policy now to get our staff hanging around bars – who knows what could come from it.”

Travel Designers was among 50 agencies celebrated during the evening at The Vox Centre, with the accolade earning the agency a significant publicity boost. “Being in the Top 50 has already given us so much attention, and loads of customers and suppliers have congratulated us,” Harding-McKay said.

Garstang Travel in Lancashire was recognised as the number one travel agency in the UK and Ireland at the Top 50 event on April 25.