Line invites 1,500 agents on Anthem of the Seas for four days of celebrations to mark the ship’s launch. The highlight was the naming ceremony and singing performance by the ship’s godmother, Thomson agent Emma Wilby. HOLLIE-RAE MERRICK reports from Southampton
Thomson to capitalise on godmother
Thomson is looking at ways to maximise the exposure of its travel consultant Emma Wilby, who is godmother to Anthem of the Seas. Wilby, who works at Thomson in Elgin, north Scotland, won a Royal Caribbean International and Travel Weekly competition to become the ship’s godmother and perform at the naming ceremony in Southampton.
Since being announced as the ship’s godmother, Wilby’s agency has been receiving calls from as afar afield as London, with customers keen to speak to and book their cruises with Wilby. The branch is likely to use
pictures from the naming ceremony in store to maximise the publicity locally. Speaking after the naming
ceremony, Wilby said it was a “great honour” to be the ship’s godmother. “I was
really nervous before I
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travelweekly.co.uk — 23 April 2015
got on the stage, but as I started to sing, it was exciting,” she said. “It’s a real honour and it hasn’t sunk in yet.
“I got emotional when the champagne smashed, as that was a particularly special moment for me.” Anthem of the Seas will sail out of Southampton this season before transferring to the US. Fraser Ellacott, customer
operations director at Tui, said: “This is a wonderful experience for Emma and Royal Caribbean, and it’s great that someone with such a fantastic background story (Travel Weekly, April 2) has taken on this role.
“Emma is a great
member of our team and she’s a fantastic seller. Now
our biggest
challenge will be getting her to come back to work,” he joked. Stuart Leven, the line’s managing director for the UK and Ireland, said: “We had a great quality of entries all vying to be the godmother, but Emma is the perfect fit. “We have always been a
trade-friendly line and always will be, but having an agent as the godmother of our newest ship is a big statement. She’s a real ambassador for the brand.”
Line bolsters ties with call centre
Royal Caribbean welcomed staff from its Guatemalan call centre on board Anthem of the Seas as it sought to establish stronger ties between UK agents and the support team. Royal ran a competition and invited the top 10 sellers from Guatemala to the UK for the inaugural celebrations. Stuart Leven, managing director
for the UK and Ireland, said the team visited Royal’s head office in
New Royal president to draw on Ce
Royal Caribbean International’s new president, Michael Bayley, said his experience at sister brand Celebrity Cruises would help him to ensure the two lines could successfully differentiate themselves from each other. Bayley said returning to Royal
Caribbean after three years at the helm of Celebrity Cruises was “like coming home to family”.
Emma Wilby sings Katy Perry’s Firework at the launch of
Anthem of the Seas on Monday
Bayley was appointed president and chief executive of Royal at the end of last year. Prior to his spell at Celebrity Cruises, he had worked for Royal for many years, in various roles. He said having experience as boss of both brands would allow him to ensure Royal was tailored to the right customer base. “Before I was with Celebrity, I was with Royal Caribbean for
SPECIAL REPORT
Royal launches Anthem of the Seas
PHOTOS: ROY RILEY
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