Carnival Cruise Line’s Your Winning Plan business success series for travel advisors culminated Wednesday evening with a grand finale event in Houston, Tex., where the grand prize winner was announced by special guest Daymond John before a crowd of hundreds of travel advisors. The winning plan chosen among more than 1000 submissions is by Kimberly Stanley from Adventure by Kim in Tupelo, Miss.

Stanley was one of eight semi-finalists competing for the grand prize. The distinction earned Stanley $5,000 in addition to the $2,500 award given to all semi-finalists, intended to help jumpstart their winning business plans. Celebrated entrepreneur Daymond John, star of ABC’s Shark Tank, announced the win after taking part in a chat about business with Adolfo Perez, Carnival Cruise Line’s senior vice president of global sales and trade marketing.

“The insightful advice Daymond John shared perfectly complements the entrepreneurial development tools, tips and resources that have made Your Winning Plan an empowering extension of our relationship with our valued travel advisor partners,” said Perez. “The travel advisors who invested in their business by participating in this program created plans that show the passion they put toward our industry’s success every day, and it’s inspiring to see great energy behind putting those plans in motion.”

The grand finale completed a series of events that brought together travel advisors from across the country in cooperation with America’s Small Business Development Centers, a partner of the U.S. Small Business Association. To award the series’ grand prize, a panel from Carnival, the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) and the American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) judged the business plans submitted, closely considering each submission’s creativity and attention to driving business results.

Each Your Winning Plan event provided opportunities for learning and business growth. One of the events hosted over the summer was held virtually, and its content is now available on GoCCL.com, so that advisors who could not attend an event may still access helpful information.

For additional information on Carnival Cruise Line and to book a cruise vacation on Carnival, call 1-800-CARNIVAL, visit http://www.carnival.com, or contact your favorite travel advisor or online travel site.