Travel Village permits work abroad Josie Klein


Travel Village Group has unveiled an initiative giving staff the chance to take working holidays without using annual leave. Under the new scheme, designed


to further enhance working conditions at the agency, agents in retail roles may put forward an argument to work remotely. Chief executive Phil Nuttall


unveiled the plans during the company’s annual conference on board MSC Virtuosa, where he acknowledged it can be difficult for families to align their holidays. He explained staff would be


invited to approach the senior team with a proposal detailing the dates they would be abroad and when they would be working, but added there “must be a business case for it”. In an interview with Travel Weekly,


he said: “In general, I need staff in the office, but we appreciate that people have partners and families and cannot always get the same weeks off work together. “To that end, we are giving people


the opportunity to put a business case forward to explain why they should be allowed to work overseas so they can spend time with their family without taking annual leave.” Nuttall revealed the scheme as he


Sales at new shops justify agents’ faith in the high street


Juliet Dennis


Travel agents committed to securing new premises on the high street say the move has paid off as they report some of their most successful openings to date. The high street success stories


in the current market are being attributed to pent-up demand and a desire to book through travel professionals, as well as the right location, local demographic and knowledgeable staff. Miles Morgan, founder of Miles


Morgan Travel, said the firm’s 19th shop – in Clevedon, Somerset – had proved its “most successful” opening to date. It launched six months


6 2 JUNE 2022


ago when the Omicron variant of Covid-19 was surging. Morgan said: “If you’d asked me


in January, I’d have said it will do well, but it has exceeded my expectations.” He put the success down to the


“perfect ingredients” of right location for the target market of affluent and retired clients, “fantastic staff” and the firm’s strong reputation in the area. Now Lets Travel, part of


Barrhead Travel, reported a similar success story in Cramlington, Northumberland, after opening its fifth branch in December. The branch has sold £1 million worth of holidays in the first quarter of trading this year. Owner Paul Johnstone said bumper sales were the result of pent-up demand


We appreciate that partners and families cannot always get the same weeks off work together


reported positive summer sales and a lates market driven by operators’ attractive pricing. He crowned Spain the “big


win” for families this summer, and claimed it is the “best year ever” to be booking cruise and touring holidays, with prices at an “all-time low”. “Spain is where the big win is for


families going abroad this summer because it has come on to the market late, so prices are low while it plays catch-up,” he said. “At the opposite end of the scale,


places such as Turkey, which are normally better value, are more expensive this year because they dropped their vaccination policies sooner, so families booked them up and now there is less supply.” Nuttall continued: “I think this


is the best year ever to get on a river cruise, ocean cruise or touring holiday as the prices are at an all-time low. We probably won’t see prices this cheap ever again. I hope people take advantage of them.”


Pictured at the opening of Miles Morgan


Travel’s Clevedon shop are, from left: Judi Shelton, travel specialist; manager Abigail Limm; and Amanda Goss, travel specialist


for holidays and for knowledgeable travel professionals. The store is staffed by agents with more than 100 years of experience between them. “People are making up for lost


time. There are no signs demand is slowing down any time soon,” Johnstone said. He added he was committed to continuing to invest in the high street across the northeast. “When I launched Now Lets


Travel in 2013, I didn’t consider it might be possible to own and operate five stores,” said Johnstone. “But highly experienced agents


are now extremely sought-after. I believe that trend is here to stay.”


Kuoni said its first new store for


two years, in Aberdeen, had also been “a great success” since opening in April, boosted by strong publicity from the start. Hard work to promote the


branch, connect with clients and attract new customers had led to strong sales, particularly of cruises and upmarket sister brand Carrier, said a spokeswoman, adding: “This has resulted in high-value bookings.” Other agents are also putting their faith in the high street, with Strawberry Holidays to open a pop-


up in a fashion boutique in Chorley. i Get Social, page 27


travelweekly.co.uk


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