b'TRAVEL TRAVEL BUSINESSBy Sarah B. HoodW hen Linda R. Burndorfer opened her travel agency, she knew she had a ready clientele among the lesbian and gay communities. What worried her was that she might lose some of her straight clients. That worry proved to be unfounded.At the end of the dayfast-forward 27 yearseverything worked out just fine, says Burndorfer, president of Outn About Travel Inc., which opened in 1994 as the first gay-owned and operated travel agencyin Winnipeg.Burndorfer had worked in travel since 1988, honing her skills with some of the citys larger travel agencies. Eventually, as her gay and lesbian clientele grew, Burndorfer says there was a pushback from the owner and a sense of discomfort from the other employees.This didnt sit well with her: IWinnipeg-based Outn About Travel was born out of a need to offer a safe thought to myselfI cant have my gayand open space for gay and lesbian travellers to buy and book tripsand lesbian friends coming into the office and spending $2,000 or $3,000 and having to hide who they are!Soon, Burndorfer found herself renting an office in Winnipegs bohemian Osborne Village neighbourhood and setting up her own shop. The goal was for me to offer a safe, open space for gay and lesbian people to come in and book a trip, even if it was just going to Toronto, she says.Today, Outn About Travel is a successful business manned by a team of four people: Burndorfer, travel consultants Crystal Peterson and Virginia Valdivia, and Burndorfers wife Lynne Robidoux, who joined the agency in 2008 to handle marketing and advertising. Shes been in charge of bringing the company up to the new age, Burndorfer says.When the business was founded, there were fewer opportunities for out travel. Burndorfer recalls that Key West, New York City and Europe were popular destinations, and still you had to be careful. I remember telling clients to be carefullike if youre going to hold hands in the street. Outn About owner and president Linda R. Burndorfer (right) runs the business with Outn About forged relationships with companiesthe help of her wife Lynne Robidoux Burndorfer (left) who manages the companys like Globus, which offered gay and lesbian motormarketing and finance2021|QBiz CANADA |5'