FUTURE WEEK


September 14-18, 2020


SUMMIT REPORT In partnership with Future of Travel Week: Leading agency figures voice their views on the outlook for


Hays says tour arm will not dent agency’s independence


H


ays Travel says growth of its in-house tour operation will not dilute its role as an


independent travel agency. The company is aiming to open


its new office in Glasgow by November to support its tour operation, Hays Travel Tour Operating. The retailer has already recruited


98 staff from Travel 2, who faced redundancy following dnata’s decision to close its Glasgow office and merge Travel 2 into Gold Medal. Joint owner Irene Hays said the


company was assessing three possible premises in Glasgow and hoped to seal a deal for one and have it fitted out and operational by November. Hays will also base its cruise


We are very much an independent agent. Staff want to be able to sell Jet2 and easyJet Holidays as well as Hays


division, led by head of cruise Catriona Parsons, in Glasgow. The tour operation’s head office


in Sunderland has 150 to 200 staff. Joint owner John Hays stressed


the group would always be an independent retailer and denied it would adopt Tui’s vertically integrated model of selling almost exclusively its own product through its shops. He said: “We have increased the


Hoteliers tipped to shun exclusive deals with operators to reduce risk exposure


Hoteliers may in future seek to avoid the risk of signing exclusive deals with a single tour operator and instead enter partnerships with more-specialist operators or agents, industry leaders predict. Many hotels had their fingers


burnt as a result of working only with one key partner during the pandemic and following Thomas Cook’s failure. Abta chairman Alistair


Rowland, chief executive of Blue Bay Travel, said: “Hotels will be cautious about offering exclusivity to anyone, particularly any kind of operator that could pick you one season and drop you the next. “I see the model changing. It’s


more likely relationships will be in the ‘middle ground’ for anyone who can get an Atol or grow their Atol numbers. Distribution will be spread among more specialists and less generalists.” In a separate Future of Travel


Week session, Jet2holidays chief executive Steve Heapy made a similar prediction. He said hoteliers thinking


twice about exclusivity with tour operators would “increase competition”, “drive down prices” and “increase quality”. And he stressed Jet2, which


does not seek exclusivity on its hotel contracts, was “not frightened of the competition”.


percentage of in-house business but it’s still less than 50% [of sales through our shops]. We are very much an independent agent. Staff want to be able to sell Jet2 and easyJet holidays and sell the Hays tour operation as well. “We don’t see any conflict of


interest. We just want to get the best deal possible for our customers.” But Hays said the tour operation


had been “incredibly positive in terms of trading” because it offered a Peace of Mind Guarantee to customers over bookings affected by Covid. He added: “The potential to do


more is enormous, and even greater now that we have experienced tour operating staff. “We are really excited by it.”


John Hays: Shops and homeworkers could get a boost after Covid pandemic


Hays Travel has reaffirmed its commitment to the high street and is hopeful traditional agents could see a boost in business once the pandemic is over. Joint owner John Hays said: “We think people will always want to book


with real people. There will always be people who want to book with other human beings.” He added: “We feel that the high street, and homeworkers – the


personalised sector – could potentially get a boost from this.” Hays said the group received high client satisfaction ratings during the


pandemic from consumer advice site Money Saving Expert, whereas many online agents received ‘minus’ scores. “It’s been very difficult for all of us,


but what people value is having real people to look after them,” he said. “Our staff have worked fantastically


hard to save a holiday where possible. But if they couldn’t, it was about refunding as quickly as we could.” The number of Hays homeworkers


has increased from 300 to 400 since the start of the lockdown.


10 24 SEPTEMBER 2020


Hays Travel co-owners Irene and John Hays


Hays Travel in Ipswich


travelweekly.co.uk


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