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Meet the Sales Team

When you call or email us here in Cusco, Peru to discuss your travel plans you will talk to a selection of people involved in the sales process, below we have listed some key staff with brief biographies so you know more about us.

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Gary Sargent is the owner and Managing Director of Escaped to Peru / Escaped to Latin America and has lived in Peru for over 10 years. Originally from Coventry, England he is now a nationalized Peruvian by virtue of his marriage to Malka. Before he “escaped” his normal life, and came to Peru, Gary worked as a design engineer in the UK but decided to make a complete sea change and ended up travelling around Latin America. In order to support himself and gain travel industry experience he worked for such travel companies as Explore Worldwide and GAP Adventures for a few years. If pushed to give his favourite countries in the region he says Peru, Argentina, Colombia and Guatemala. Gary is not always directly involved with the nitty gritty of the sales team, this is managed by Steve, but he is always on hand for advice and suggestions on how tours can be made better. Photo taken in Punta del Este, Uruguay on a side trip from Buenos Aires, Argentina.
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Steve Mellor is originally from Nottingham in the UK. He has worked in tourism for over 12 years including working for Explore Worldwide and Journey Latin America both as a Tour Leader and in the sales department. Steve has travelled extensively throughout Latin America and now lives in Cusco where he works as the General Manager for Escaped to Peru / Escaped to Latin America. Steve has an incredible depth of knowledge on Latin America which is constantly being passed on to his sales team. There are few places on the continent where he has not been, allowing him to inform and advise sales consultants on destinations where there are gaps in knowledge regarding tours, hotels etc. Steve especially loves Peru, Ecuador and Brazil. Photo taken at 4000 meters above sea level at Laguna Colorada in Bolivia on one of his recent more rugged trips.

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Zara Woolley is, much like most Australians, a travel addict. A qualified English teacher she has travelled the world teaching along the way. Having done everything from working in the office of a law firm in Australia through to selling gym memberships in London. On her extensive travels Zara fell in love with the Andean nations of Peru, Ecuador and Bolivia and is now enjoying her new life working with Escaped to Latin America as a Travel Consultant This photo was taken of Zara with some local colour near the famous 12 angled stone in Cusco on a recent trip to Peru.
sandboarding in Atacama
Robert Els has had a major interest in Peru since he was a young child, so after living in London for 2 years, and working in Berlin in tourism, he decided to leave the hustle and bustle of city life behind, and travelled to Latin America for some ‘down-time’. Robert travelled around parts of Latin America and fell evermore in love with this amazing continent, and upon arriving in Peru, and especially Cusco, knew that this was where he wanted to spend the rest of his life. He lived in Peru for 1 year and returned to his home country of South Africa to say his final goodbyes before returning to Peru where he now works as part of the Escaped to Peru sales team. A love for adventure sports such as downhill mountain biking and rafting ensures that Robert is never bored in this diverse country. Robert would rate his favorite parts of Latin America as Peru, Northern Argentina and Paraguay.
Photo taken while sandboarding in San Pedro de Atacama in Chile.
Anna Simpson Originally from England she went to a wedding in Cuba and decided she wanted to live in Latin America – she moved six months later and has been living here ever since. She has travelled through various parts of Latin America and has extensive knowledge of Peru in particular. Before emigrating she worked in Sales and Administration and is able to bring her experience in these fields to her work in the travel industry. Her favourite countries in Latin America are Peru, Argentina and Brazil. Another animal lover, Anna is pictured here in the Peruvian Tambopata Amazon jungle with a macaw.
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Seppe Bleukx is a multi-lingual Belgian who has worked in various countries around Latin America. Before joining our sales team his most recent job involved being a Facilitator for Colombian Human Rights defenders, and assisting with their international presence and lobbying and protecting them in their day-to-day working environment. He is now employing his considerable nerve in the much less dangerous environment of the Escaped to Latin America sales office. Like Steve and Gary, Seppe has been to the vast majority of countries in Latin America.