BUSINESS NEWS executive Fritz Joussen delivers upbeat assessment. Ian Taylor reports


‘We have to close shops as we have too much supply’


Tui is not planning to axe more jobs than the 8,000 already announced, about 11% of the group’s workforce. The company announced the


job cuts in May as part of plans to cut costs by 30%. Asked whether the plans had been revised in light of the continuing pandemic, chief executive Fritz Joussen said: “We said 8,000 roles may go. That is a global number. The main effect will be seen with the digital transformation and the closure of shops.” Tui announced the closure


of 166 agencies in the UK and Ireland at the end of July and is in consultation with staff. However, 70% of the 900 staff affected could


be retained either by joining a new homeworking sales and service team to replace overseas contact centres or filling vacancies across the 350 remaining stores. Joussen said: “We have to


close [UK shops] because we have too much supply.” He told Travel Weekly: “There is never a full extent [of closures]. The question is how customers buy over time. It’s likely we will have real estate for quite a time.” But he added: “Everything we do now will be digital-first.”


Tui highlights ‘bargain’ rates this year and higher prices next year


Europe’s biggest travel group forecast “normalised demand” from 2022 as it reported “strong” demand for next summer. Tui chief executive Fritz Joussen


last week announced bookings for summer 2021 were up 145% year on year and average selling prices up 9%. He said: “Bookings for next year are up even if you exclude voucher rebookings. We had 430,000 new bookings [for summer 2021] since June.” Tui reported a loss of €2.3 million


for the nine months to June, but forecast a “return to a normalised level of demand in 2022 and beyond”. Asked to justify the forecast, Joussen said: “We have


145% more bookings for next summer – that is extremely strong. The booking level for next year is more than double this year’s. How much evidence do we need?” The group has cut capacity for


this winter by 40% and for summer 2021 by 20%, but Joussen hailed the higher average selling price for next summer. He said: “This year definitely


you can find a bargain, also for winter. We have a lot of bookings in the last week or two weeks before departure – 15% of our load factor is generated in the last week and at good prices [for customers]. Next year, with the [number of] bookings in, it is more expensive.”


Joussen: 2021 bookings very good


Tui has reported “strong bookings” following the resumption of holiday travel despite the impact of changing travel restrictions, particularly in the UK. Fritz Joussen, Tui Group


chief executive, conceded the UK government’s reimposition of quarantine restrictions on arrivals from Spain affected UK bookings but said: “Even with all the changes, we restarted operations. People did not cancel. There are alternative destinations – Greece and so on. It’s a bit customer-unfriendly to announce at short notice. It created a bit of uncertainty, but we have seen good bookings to Greece.” Tui reported a third-quarter loss


of €1.45 billion for April to June and a loss of €2.3 billion for the nine months to June, but Joussen said: “We believe in Q4 [July to September] we may be in a cash- neutral position on operations.”


travelweekly.co.uk We have extensive


health protocols [but] the situation is fragile. We have to hope for the best and plan for the worst


He noted a steady increase in Tui’s


operations following its resumption from Germany in June with flights to Majorca and Portugal and said: “In July, we had strong bookings. We had almost 1.7 million bookings since the restart.” These group bookings split over


three seasons, with more than one million for this summer, 195,000 for winter and 430,000 for summer 2021. He also noted: “We were first


to open cruise ships. We do them without disembarkation. It’s working well but we expect destinations will open quite soon. Booking levels for


cruise next year are very good.” However, Joussen noted differences


between Tui’s source markets, saying: “The Nordic countries are last coming back. Germany and the UK are strong – if you reopen a destination, it starts to pick up. “Long-haul destinations are not


really open. Bookings are much more short term. People wait longer to book. We see good bookings for August, but October is slow. That is related to the uncertainty. People think there may be a travel warning.” Speaking prior to the UK


extension of quarantine restrictions to France, the Netherlands and Malta late on Thursday of last week, he said: “We have extensive health protocols [and] customers like it. Our customer rating is 8.5 out of 10, so people are happy on vacation.” But he added: “The situation is


still fragile. We have to hope for the best and plan for the worst.”


Joussen: ‘We see good bookings for August, but October is slow’


20 AUGUST 2020 39


PICTURES: Shutterstock; Rudiger Nehmzow; Shaun Flannery Photography


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