FUTURE SPRING FORUM


Future of Travel Spring Forum: Experts discuss the industry’s restart


Agencies face dilemma about reopening shops


Samantha Mayling


Travel agents face a “very difficult” choice next month when they can reopen shops but warn that doing so will be a “double-edged sword”. The government’s roadmap out


of lockdown allows for non-essential shops in England to reopen from April 12, but speakers at Travel Weekly’s Future of Travel Spring Forum pointed out that agents won’t earn money from sales until holidays resume. Julia Lo Bue-Said, chief executive


of The Advantage Travel Partnership, said reopening shops was a “double-


edged sword” as agents would have to justify salary costs against keeping staff on furlough. “Agents want to get back to


serving their clients,” she said. “But in terms of aligning that with government support, it’s not aligned.” She said that while leisure


travel is banned, agencies will be “caught”. “They’ll be able to open but effectively, they’re still shut down,” she said. “It’s really difficult to try to get the government to understand.” Miles Morgan, chairman of Miles


Morgan Travel, agreed deciding whether to reopen was “very difficult”.


Debbie Goffin


Catch up with all the Future of Travel sessions: vimeo.com/showcase/futureoftravelspringforum


Lucy Huxley


Guy Novik, USAirtours


Miles Morgan


Julia Lo Bue-Said


Agents want to get


back to serving their clients, but [doing so] is not aligned with government support


He said headlines of sales spikes


after the roadmap announcement created “a feeling that it instantly meant people like me were getting cash”. But he said: “Nothing could be further from the truth. Most of those bookings are for future seasons.”


Morgan said he would need two


agents in each shop to open, but currently has fewer people working on Saturdays than he has branches [18]. He said reopening on April 12 was


“going to be a challenge”, adding: “I have to take advantage of furlough – sales don’t justify anything different.” Debbie Goffin, sales and


marketing director at Premier Holidays, said operators also had the dilemma of “to furlough or not to furlough”, pointing out the need to keep staff working to manage


cancellations and sell holidays. i Future of Travel, pages 46-48


‘Tourism must change luxury focus’ Ian Taylor


Travel businesses must “redefine luxury” if mass tourism is to meet decarbonisation targets and become more sustainable. That is according to Deloitte


director of climate change and sustainability Emily Cromwell, who told the Travel Weekly Future of Travel Spring Forum: “Now we have a paradigm where the consumer is king and luxury is all about consumption.” She said: “We have this linear cycle


– taking natural resources, using them briefly and disposing of them. We need to shift the definition of luxury and shift consumer expectations to more circular economies and


8 25 MARCH 2021


Emily Cromwell


experiences and a future that is far less [about] consumption and luxury associated with stuff because that is not sustainable.” Asked if mass tourism is


sustainable in its current form, Cromwell said: “No. But businesses are going to change.” She insisted: “Tourism is a


Jane Ashton


perfect industry to be the harbinger of something new. If you look at the younger generation, there is a shift in expectations around sustainability credentials. This is an opportunity to offer a redefined luxury.” Cromwell argued: “Are you


presenting luxury as lots of excess? Or are you presenting luxury as a deeply impactful experience of peace


and quiet and a break from this noisy world? We may not be where we want to be as far as consumers putting their money where their mouth is or governments regulating, but it will happen. “It is essential businesses get


ahead of this trend. Businesses that do will be more favourably viewed.” EasyJet sustainability director


Jane Ashton said: “Concern about climate change has never been higher. Research shows overall awareness has gone up during this crisis.” But she said the extent that


translates into consumer behaviour “remains to be seen”, adding: “The onus is on businesses to put this front and centre of our strategy.”


travelweekly.co.uk


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