NEWS SPECIAL REPORT
Abercrombie & Kent heralds scope for growth during a Crystal Serenity shakedown cruise. Robin Murray reports from the Mediterranean
Crystal’s UK hopes A
bercrombie & Kent Travel Group’s sales chief has tipped Crystal Cruises’ UK
market to grow considerably following the operator’s acquisition of the luxury line last year. Marett Taylor said she believes
the purchase will create a “seamless experience” for agents that will in turn lead to an increase in sales. “The UK market has huge growth
potential; it’s one of the markets with the most discerning travellers who will see that what we offer is different to any other cruise line now there’s the A&K link,” said Taylor. “And agents will play a critical role
in helping us do that, as while we may know cruising and the destinations, they know how to find the right clients who fit the Crystal brand and how to sell it to them.” Taylor
Marett Taylor
10
said the combination of Crystal’s ships and A&K’s 55 destination management
companies globally 3 AUGUST 2023
travelweekly.co.uk
UK travellers will see that what we offer is different to any other cruise line now there’s the A&K link
would create an “unbeatable” product that would attract new customers. Taylor was promoted last month
to the newly created role of chief sales officer as part of the ‘One A&K’
strategy. This aims to connect the luxury travel group’s markets and brands by establishing new global roles linking A&K and Crystal. Her appointment followed that
of chief marketing officer Peter Chipchase, whose aim is partly to “make the booking and selling process easier and more enticing” for consumers and agents, Taylor said. The group has seen several
recent high-profile departures, including chief tour operating officer Kerry Golds and sales and
business development director James Coughlan. But Taylor said their exits were “merely coincidental” rather than forced, adding that they had given the company a chance to review its global strategy. “When they decided to leave,
it gave us a chance to take stock globally and figure out the strategy we wanted to take forward,” she said. Taylor is currently recruiting for
a senior vice-president of trade sales for the UK and EMEA and also plans to bolster Crystal’s UK sales team.
Group strives for a ‘unified product’
The combination of Abercrombie & Kent’s land tours and Crystal’s cruise product will attract more new-to-cruise customers, according to the group’s senior vice-president of global marketing. Jacqueline Barney said the company had been
working on creating a “unified product” that combines A&K’s tours and Crystal’s sailings, with the pair collaborating closely on the line’s 2025 world cruise. “For 2025 we’re doing a couple of things to test
out our itineraries,” she said. “Imagine taking a world cruise and stopping off at iconic destinations as you go. “Imagine, if you had a three-day gap between
Guayaquil and Lima, being able to jump off and take an extraordinary A&K expedition to the Galápagos and ticking that off the bucket list.” Barney believes the combination of the brands
will set the line apart from others being launched by luxury hotel brands. More details about the 2025 world cruise would
be released soon, she added, with the rest of Crystal’s 2025 programme being announced in September. Crystal’s 2024 world cruise will depart San Diego
on January 18 and visit 28 countries over 125 nights, concluding in Miami in June.
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