A DAY WITH... TRAVEL WEEKLY ON THE ROAD


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ABOVE LEFT: Carolyn Park, Julie Pymm, Steve Giles and Zoe Barnes


ABOVE: The modern interior


LEFT: Zoe, Julie, Steve and after- sales support and concierge, Catherine Smith


Team spirit Park says staff and independence are the key to her agency’s success. “I still spend 60% of my day with clients and some only buy from me,” she said. “But because of the way we have the business set up, it almost manages itself. There is no hierarchy or managers – we all get along and get on with the job. I’m very lucky. Our offices talk to each other; we pool knowledge.” Each C The World’s branch has a slightly


different sales mix, with the Bath branch enjoying strong sales of cruises and escorted tours. “We hardly ever sell US holidays at Bath. In


Bristol we do a lot of South America and from Thornbury we sell a lot of Africa and New Zealand and more family holidays,” added Park. The mantra is to sell holidays that best suit clients – if operators are not on the contracted list run by Freedom Travel Group, which the agency is a member of, she asks if they can be added. The agency is also an Aito (Association of Independent Tour Operators) agent, with Park on her second two-year stint on the panel. “We work with lovely niche operators,” she


said. “It’s about matching the right client to the right holiday and making sure they come back to us. The guys have carte blanche to book any operator they like.”


Tour operation Park’s current project is to set up trade-only golf specialist operator Tee The World with her partner, fellow golfer and C The World’s consultant Tim. It is poised to launch in September, with


C The World the first partner for flight consolidator Aviate, which acts as the principal, in a new venture to help retailers set up their own specialist tour operators. Holidays in Europe, the Caribbean, Africa and the Middle East will be offered and Park may even employ one or two sales executives to visit agents. “We will offer straight golf holidays and others that just include a few rounds and stays at boutique hotels near courses,” she said. The hope is that there is a gap in the market


for a B2B golf specialist. “I have spoken to agents who say they have shied away from promoting golf because there isn’t a trade-only golf operator,” she explained.


Current market In between developing Tee The World, Park has had to deal with changes in credit card payment charges, GDPR and new Package Travel Regulations. She said: “This year has been hard. There has been a lot of legislative changes, but in terms of trading we are up; we had a stonking June.”


❛


Juliet Dennis @juliet_dennis


We’re at the bar! No really, and it’s inside C The World agency in Bath…Thanks team for having me! @c_the_world


JULIET’S DAY AT C THE WORLD


The first thing I noticed when I


walked into C The World was its calm and friendly atmosphere. Director Carolyn Park’s unflappable


nature no doubt helps, not to mention that staff get on so well. The cosy agency has been well- designed with a modern look and feel, from its polished wooden floors to its unusual lampshades. And then I went downstairs…the


cellar has been kitted out to feel like the inside of an aircraft cabin. The pièce de résistance is a fully-stocked bar, although I had to say no to an alcoholic drink at 11am and opted for a nice cuppa instead. The blue light of the “cabin”


windows makes it feel like you really are in a first class aircraft cabin – a lovely touch. Nothing was too much trouble for


this team. So when I left my notepad behind, Steve quickly located it and kept it safe until I could dash back to pick it up.


I get the distinct impression that


customers feel like they are in safe hands at C The World.


She also has a novel solution for GDPR – a special, sealed ‘GDPR bin’ where staff put paper waste that is shredded and removed by the company’s stationery supplier, while data on the agency’s computer system is saved and encrypted. The result is a paper-free office. Park added: “At the end of the day a lot of it is common sense.”


23 August 2018 travelweekly.co.uk 35


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