Tributes paid to industry veteran Michael East


Travel Weekly reporters


Tributes have been paid to travel industry executive, investor and consultant Michael East, who has died aged 82, after a period of illness. His wife Christine said: “With


broken hearts, myself and the East family announce the death of my beloved husband, Michael East.” Hall of Fame member East


founded, led and invested in several leading travel companies, and was most recently a strategic consultant. A qualified accountant, he joined


Clarksons Holidays in 1969, rising to group financial director, before joining Horizon Holidays in 1974. After a period in Singapore,


he returned to the UK to found a travel industry consultancy, and in 1986 founded Argyle Executive Recruitment. He was later managing director


of Kingley Event Management Solutions and daily travel newsletter e-tid.com before their acquisition in 2014 by Travel Weekly parent Travel Weekly Group, now Jacobs Media, of which he was a founding shareholder. Jacobs Media owner and


chairman Clive Jacobs said: “This is an incredibly sad day. Michael understood the industry intimately


Michael East, pictured in 2015


and was able to both advise and bring together its leaders with authority and gravitas. “He had a great eye for talent


and created some of the industry’s premier events such as the Hall of Fame and the Agent Achievement Awards, which I am proud to say now sit within the Jacobs Media portfolio. “Michael was like a second


father who guided me through the many ups and downs of my industry entrepreneurial journey. He became a valued founder shareholder and board member of Jacobs Media 15 years ago.” Kristina Wallen, founder and


managing director of executive recruitment agency Harp Wallen, added: “Michael had a remarkable


Stansted plans bigger terminal after sealing £1.1bn investment


Stansted has revealed details of a £1.1 billion five-year investment programme, which includes a £600 million extension to the airport’s existing terminal. Trade figures welcomed the expansion but called for wider support for regional airports. Advantage Travel Partnership chief executive Julia Lo Bue-Said hailed the investment as “an important boost for the outbound travel sector”.


8 17 OCTOBER 2024


influence on my career, as well as on many others’. He showed confidence in me and pushed me out of my comfort zone. He was ahead of his time as a male ally.” Further tributes were paid


on Travel Weekly’s LinkedIn and Facebook pages, describing him as a “legend” and “gentleman”. Fiona Jeffery, founder of clean


water charity Just a Drop, said: “Michael was a character within the industry who made his mark and helped others to make theirs.” A private, family funeral will


be held in the coming weeks, with a memorial celebration to be held later. The family has requested no flowers but donations can be made to Parkinsons UK.


Florida to launch marketing drive in wake of hurricanes


A multimillion-dollar crisis recovery plan is being hatched by Florida tourism chiefs in the wake of devastation in parts of the state caused by Hurricanes Helene and Milton. A social media campaign using a ‘Sunshine is Shining in Florida’ message aims to stress that many parts of Florida are open to travellers.


Hurtigruten unveils rewards scheme as trade sales double


Hurtigruten has seen sales through UK travel agents more than double compared with this time last year. For the year to date, the cruise


line’s B2B revenue has grown by 107% year on year, according to Iain Powell, Hurtigruten’s sales and marketing vice-president for the UK and EMEA. He revealed the sales surge


as he announced a new rewards scheme for UK-based travel agents. Agents who sign up at


hurtigrutenrewards.co.uk by 11.59pm on October 31 will qualify for a welcome bonus of 100 points credited to their account. They will receive 100


rewards points for bookings from Hurtigruten’s Original range and 200 rewards points for Signature bookings. Every 10 points equates to £1


and can be redeemed as a lifestyle voucher that can be used at more than 200 retailers in the UK. “This is our way of saying


thank you for the support the UK trade has given us,” said Powell. “We are having a really great


year; the B2B trade channel is really important to us. “Those rewards will flex


up at key parts of the year. In January and February, we might increase that and look to reward agents even more when we are in a really busy peak period.”


Harrison and Jones take senior


roles at Diverse School Travel Industry veterans Chris Harrison and Derek Jones have been appointed to senior roles at Diverse School Travel. Former Dawson & Sanderson boss Chris Harrison has become chief executive at the schools tour operator while former Kuoni managing director Derek Jones has joined as a non-executive director. Diverse School Travel provides educational travel experiences.


travelweekly.co.uk


PICTURE: Steve Dunlop


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60