Meet Kate Mitchell
LOCAL FOREIGNER’S TEAM OF INDEPENDENT CONTRACTORS
This post is part of our series celebrating our Independent Contractors and Hosting Program. The Local Foreigner's Hosting Program provides a platform of systems and support for independent travel advisors.
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Early Explorations + the Corporate Climb
A native New Yorker, Kate comes from a family that has always prioritized travel. Her dad’s nearly 50-year career with Marriott meant the family got to take advantage of the brand’s outposts worldwide, and her parents didn’t let the opportunity slip away – they were always packing onto a plane and heading somewhere exciting, including a two-week trip through Egypt when she was in second grade. Kate’s exposure to the world at a young age sparked an adulthood driven by seeing new places – never wanting to visit the same destination twice.
Aside from saying “yes” to every travel opportunity that came her way, in her teens and twenties, Kate honed her skills as a serious ski racer, and spent a lot of time getting to the top of new mountains - and then getting down them faster than everyone else. (She’s still the Local Foreigner expert on all things downhill.) Following graduation from Villanova, she gravitated toward sales, beginning at Discovery Communications. Her first sales job was on the Travel Channel, obviously, and she eventually rose to lead the advertising sales team for Oprah Winfrey’s cable network, teaching her that luck is preparation meeting opportunity. Kate went on to senior sales and marketing roles across Gary Vaynerchuk’s Gallery Media Group and Majestic Ventures & Investments.
“I was introduced to people all over the industry, and when I met the Local Foreigner, it was obvious to me that there was TLF, and then there was everyone else.”
-Kate Mitchell, on why she joined The Local Foreigner
Testing the Travelverse
By 2022, the combination of Covid and a changing media landscape had Kate looking for what was next – not something undertaken lightly by a woman whose motto is, “If there's not intention, why are you doing it?” She spoke with leaders across the travel industry as she explored the idea of marrying her client service and sales knowledge with her travel experience. All paths led to Local Foreigner’s industry-leading organization, processes, and resources. With her trademark directness, she says, “I was introduced to people all over the industry, and when I met the Local Foreigner, it was obvious to me that there was TLF, and then there was everyone else.”
“[Kate’s] calendar is a masterclass in efficient planning. Meetings are not scattered randomly; they align seamlessly, back-to-back. The result is a workday where every moment is purposeful and productivity reigns supreme.”
Matters of Efficiency
In building her business, Kate has drawn especially on two things - her expertise on the slopes, with her encyclopedic knowledge of the terrain, character, and hospitality offerings of mountains the world over, and her deep understanding of family travel. While globetrotting with preteens may intimidate the best of us, her planning process is optimized for the specificities of trips with kids. In itineraries, as in life, she is nothing if not efficient.
Speaking with Kate even briefly will show you why she was drawn to TLF’s focus on organization and process: her calendar is a masterclass in effective planning. Meetings are not scattered randomly; they align seamlessly, back-to-back. The 15-minute cushion between discussions? Unnecessary. The result is a workday where every moment is purposeful and productivity reigns supreme. And, of course, this sense of order continues outside of working hours as well – a minimalist when it comes to luggage, she's emphatically “carry-on only,” even when traveling with her husband and eleven-year-old twins. You can also miss her with the early airport arrivals – she gets there 75 minutes in advance, and is through the Clear line before most travelers have even gotten their suitcases out of the car. Even in the holiday hustle, her Christmas gifts are purchased, wrapped, and under the (decorated) tree the weekend after Thanksgiving.
For Kate, the mantra is clear: there's always a better way. The chaos of traffic is not just an inconvenience - it's a puzzle waiting to be solved. The efficient route isn't just about avoiding congestion; it's about reclaiming precious minutes for more meaningful pursuits. It's not just about reaching the endpoint; it's about optimizing every leg of the journey. But there’s one place where you’ll find Kate lingering, savoring instead of streamlining, and that’s around a cheeseboard. Unsurprisingly also a consummate host, she loves to bring guests together around a sharing spread. Her favorite cheese? Don’t come expecting something soft or mild – she loves a super sharp gouda.