NEWS ROUND-UP


COMMENT: “I love how Jet2holidays markets its virtues in a common-sense way that appeals to its target market.”Miles Morgan, page 34


Spear Travels is in picture with image-led campaign


Juliet Dennis juliet.dennis@travelweekly.co.uk


Spear Travels has put together an image-led year-long ad campaign, overhauled its website and logo and developed an app for its customers.


The 13-strong agency chain,


celebrating its 35th anniversary, announced the news to more than 70 staff, including homeworkers, at its annual conference in Birmingham, where Wendy Wu Tours founder Wendy Wu was a guest speaker. The group’s new campaign,


Make Memories, will run throughout 2019 in conjunction with operator partners, which can book two-week slots during the year to promote messages and offers through image-led window posters, staff webinars, e-shots and on social media. Joan Jones, head of business


development, said: “Our strategy for next year is to have amazing images, with minimal information, as agents’ windows are image- driven. We want to promote the fact we have got great offers, but we don’t want to look cheap. “Feedback revealed we were


putting too much information in windows and customers were


Kuoni partners with weather site to find best time to travel


If there is one question clients are almost guaranteed to ask, it’s what’s the weather going to be like in a destination. With this in mind, Kuoni


has teamed up with former TV weather presenters Sara Thornton


NEWS IN BRIEF


Thomas Cook share price falls following profit warning


Thomas Cook shares fell to a six-year low on Monday amid the fallout from a profit warning a week ago. Its shares lost more than a fifth of their value and closed 6p down to 23p, valuing the company at £400 million.


Virgin Voyages starts search for two UK sales managers


Virgin Voyages is recruiting for two UK-based sales managers. The job description says the roles will “be front and centre with our valued travel agency partners”. Its first ship – Scarlet Lady – will launch in 2020.


G Adventures acquires majority share of TruTravels


ALL CHANGE: Wendy Wu at the conference with Spear Travels founders Peter and Libby Cookson and right, one of the new posters


“We want to promote the fact we have great offers, but we don’t want to look cheap”


walking away if they couldn’t go on that date. Now they will have to ome into the shop to find out more.” Jones said agents would also


have ‘lates’ window cards to feature deals under the new ‘Make Memories for Less’ tagline. The miniple has also developed


an app for clients, which it hopes to launch before the January peak


and John Hammond, who run website Weathertrending to help people navigate their lives around the weather. The pair have launched a


film for uonis website, whih gives an insight into year-round weather patterns in the Maldives and is part of a series of weather blogs and video insights to help holidaymakers choose the best times to visit destinations. Kuoni UK chief executive Derek


8travelweekly.co.uk6 December 2018


sales period. This will allow clients to see all travel documents on their mobile phones. “At the moment we email or


give the documents to clients, but this will be of huge benefit to customers and a big paper cost saving,” added Jones. The miniple’s website has


been revamped to look more ‘modern and inspirational’ and the company has also changed the colour of the logo. All staff have been given branded


leather business card holders to mark the agency’s 35 years, as well as diaries and notebooks featuring key dates and supplier targets.


G Adventures has acquired small group youth travel specialist TruTravels. The business, which is based in Surrey, was co-founded in 2012 by Joe Fallon and Mark Pope who will continue to run the company as partners and minority shareholders.


APT boosts sales team with two new appointments


APT has appointed two new members to its UK sales team. Denise Rice has joined from Cyplon Holidays to become business development manager, responsible for the southeast, and Bianca Venn, who worked for APT in Australia, has been appointed sales executive.


Jones said: “Weather is so pivotal to the conversations our travel experts are having with customers on a daily basis, we thought this partnership was a perfet fit. “Many destinations have wet


WEATHERTRENDING: John Hammond and Sara Thornton


and dry seasons and variations in between so it can be tricky to know the best times to travel.” Hammond said: “The number one thing we’re always asked about is where or when to go on holiday to secure perfect weather.”


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