CONFERENCE


Advantage reports record £100m revenue by AMS


T


he Advantage Travel Partnership has reported a record year for its Advantage Managed


Services (AMS) division for the year 2021-22. For the first time since its


inception 13 years ago, members operating under the AMS model achieved £100 million in turnover for the 12 months to September 2022. Revenue increased by 41%,


bookings by 13%, and average booking values by 44% compared with 2019. Advantage’s AMS division


has more than 80 branches and is the fastest-growing area of the consortium’s membership portfolio. Kelly Cookes, chief commercial


officer, said: “We are thrilled to have achieved this record result, especially on the back of what has been the most challenging period in history for the industry and our members. “It absolutely demonstrates how


Paul Nunn


forums remains incredibly important. We remain committed to looking for further ways to add even more value to them and their businesses.” Chief operating officer Paul Nunn


said: “The offering of our AMS proposition is invaluable to those operating in both leisure and business travel and continues to evolve and adapt to the changing needs of our members. “Today, AMS offers a market-


hard our members who operate under the AMS model have worked during the past 12 months and is a great credit to them collectively for achieving this milestone. “As a member-owned


organisation, our focus remains fully on the success of our members through our significant buying scale. “Giving our members a say in


how we operate through our member


leading trust account model where all monies are protected – not just Atol monies – giving consumers and the agent maximum protection and continues to offer best-in-class merchant facilities. “Members operating under the


AMS model also have a dedicated contact in the AMS finance team who can act as a business partner across a wide variety of finance issues as well as having access to the full range of benefits that comes from being an Advantage member.”


Virgin Voyages plans to double sales team to 16


Virgin Voyages plans to double its sales team next year ahead of the delivery of two new ships. The cruise line announced plans to take its sales


team from eight to 16. It said this would give each staff member fewer accounts to work on, so they could spend more time engaging with agents to help boost sales. This will be the second time in two years the line has


doubled its sales team, having increased it from four to eight in 2021. Shane Riley, vice-president of global sales, said he


hoped to hire people who previously worked in travel and wanted to return to the industry. “We want to use these roles to bring talent back into


the industry as the UK market is huge and we want the right people,” he said. “We have two ships launching next year so it is important to provide more specialism


10 20 OCTOBER 2022


in the team, have more field-based people and more account managers so each can have fewer accounts and, therefore, more time focusing on each one.”


Valiant Lady


Consortium rebrands cru


The Advantage Travel Partnership has rebranded its cruise product to help members “maximise their earning potential”. Previously called Cruise Champs, the


product will now be known as Latitude and will be led by the consortium’s cruise commercial manager Jonny Peat. As part of the rebrand, Advantage plans


to boost communication with members by sharing supplier news and videos, and by relaunching a Facebook group to update members on latest news and deals. The consortium has secured a deal


for Latitude members to join the Clia Certification programme so they can


Kelly Cookes


Advantage Cruise Conference: Consortium hosts ‘Back to the Water’ event for m


Clia’s Andy Harmer moderates a panel discussion


travelweekly.co.uk


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