The 100 Most Powerful
Women in Travel

   Gloria Bohan, president and CEO of Fairfax, Virginia-based Omega World Travel which has a presence in 32 cities throughout the world and was recently ranked as the largest woman-owned company in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area by the Washington Business Journal -- is an expert in all areas of the travel industry. And it is that expertise that has helped Bohan expand her business from a modest one-person office into a $612 million agency with 1,000 employees in the U.S. and abroad.

    A firm believer in personal contact, Bohan began her agency in 1972 with the small-office concept in mind. She has maintained that concept, which, she says, enables the company to meet its goal of personalized service.

    Beyond that, Bohan says the key to success is diversification. To that end, Bohan has expanded her company's operations into every major area of corporate, leisure and government travel, and provides onsite service to a variety of corporations and government offices worldwide.

    Bohan has expanded her business in other ways as well - mainly by launching several successful Web sites. Cruise.com, a separate company founded by Omega, has become the Internet's largest cruise seller, while Omega's other sites, such as TourDeals.com and AirDeals.com, give clients access to an international database of discount inventory. Another Omega-owned site, Top9.com, is a Web ranking and search directory that has information on everything from arts and entertainment to travel and merchandise.

    In April, as a recipient of the Entrepreneur of the Year Award from the Business Women's Network and The National Foundation for Women Legislators, Bohan was honored for her success in growing a business that has demonstrated community and business leadership as well as active mentoring of other women.

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