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Gallivant Travel Agency is one of many businesses uniting behind TTG’s Trust in Travel Agents campaign. Sophie Griffiths visited the agency to find out how the campaign’s principles have boosted its business
‘Travel agent trust is something to fight for’
RUNNING A chain of Portuguese video rental stores was perhaps not the most obvious route to becoming owners of an inde- pendent travel agency in the heart of a sleepy village in Essex. But despite the growing list of uncertainties facing high street travel stores, for Helder and Celia Lemos, a travel agency was the perfect choice for a new venture, and four years on, they have no regrets about their decision. “We started reading TTG when we moved to the UK because my sister was in the hotels business,” Helder explains. “Much of the travel industry had parallels with the video rental business – with the threat of the internet and lots of retail stores closing down.” Helder says he was unsurprised when the vil-
lage’s only travel agency closed, after its owner entered retirement. “But my sister said that’s a nice idea for a new business. She insisted there was a future in the high street because there was still a need for service. We had been looking for a new business, and realised there might still be a place for a high street travel agent after all.” Helder says TTG’s Trust in Travel Agent’s cam- paign struck a chord with him because the Char- ter’s principles of service, protection, value and community were the key building blocks on which the husband and wife team founded their business, Gallivant Travel Agency. “For us, service is essential,” says Helder.
“It’s what separates the high street from the internet. We would not have opened the shop if we could not offer that.” It was this desire to provide the locals with a good service, which Helder says resulted in him dedicating so much time to exploring various protection options.
“It was a minefield,” he says. “Abta’s bonding system was too complicated, so we opted for TTA
Owners Helder and Celia Lemos
Sign up to the Trust in Travel Agents Charter – and get free campaign badges and a window sticker from TTG!
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instead, which was easier to explain to customers. A lot of our clients are retired, and are trustees themselves – they understand this system.” The Lemos are also keen to
stress the emphasis they place on value, in the products that they offer. “We try to dissuade people from choosing a holiday just on price. We don’t mind
selling cheap, if it is good value, but we never worked with Goldtrail for example because we felt it was a substandard product,” Helder says. “We felt we would lose our reputation if we sold a product that wasn’t worth it.” And reputation, it seems, is key in a commu-
nity as small as Ingatestone. “No one can do anything without being noticed,” says Celia. “We’ve found a lot of sup- port in having a retail store in a small village. We spend a lot of time chatting to locals.” As proof of this, Helder and Celia often wave at passers-by during our conversation, with one villager coming into the shop to say hello. “We donate a prize to the annual Rotary golf
charity day,” says Helder. “And we pitch in finan- cially to help fund the village’s annual Victorian evening, when the street is closed to traffic and retailers all dress up and open their stores late.”
The agency’s com- mitment to the four principles is clearly working. “It’s been a difficult year for the industry, but this year has helped us become more confi- dent,” Helder says. “The ash cloud
brought everyone’s attention to how vulnerable people can be, and how important agents are. “We had one client stuck in Turks and Caicos who said to us: ‘If I had booked this myself, I would have major problems.’ We did all the work for him on his behalf to get him home. “During the ash cloud, we thought it might be the end for us, but it woke up clients to the benefits of having an agent.” This is why Helder says he wants to be a part
of TTG’s campaign; it sums up what his business has always been about. “The independent agent is something to fight for,” he says. “It might be part of a dying breed, but it’s about the service we provide – and that’s what we get told by our clients.”
TTG’s trusted travel agents
Shop name: Gallivant Travel Agency Owners: Helder and Celia Lamos Location: Ingatestone, Essex Number of staff: Two Specialist areas: No specialisms –
they cover everything because they’re in such a small catchment area.
What makes it special? Gallivant
Travel Agency comprises a husband and wife team, who have fully embraced the difficulties which 2010 has thrown at the travel industry. They have worked hard to prove to the local community their business is a vital part of the village, and from the friendly waves given by people walking past the shop, it seems they’ve proved their point.
22.10.2010 09
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