Ella Sagar
Agents report ‘steady’ January sales 85%
£1m
Agents have reported “steady sales” heading into the last week of January as many target a payday boost this weekend. However, the largely positive
reports came as Jet2 chief executive Steve Heapy warned of continued caution among consumers, telling Spanish trade publication Hosteltur that sales on the first Saturday of the month were “acceptable but did not reach expectations”. He said the operator was seeing
“similar” trends to last year, with clients booking late and “postponing the decision to buy in the hope of future discounts”. Heapy’s reports of a sluggish
Sunshine Saturday and slow start to
Share of Barrhead sales in Jan for travel this year
the year echoed many in the trade in recent weeks, but Barrhead Travel Group managing director Nicki Tempest-Mitchell revealed trading had “strengthened noticeably” since January 21. She said 85% of bookings since January 1 were for travel this year, with the majority for between May and September. Other agency and consortium
bosses also reported strong sales amid hopes for further improvements this weekend. John Sullivan, commercial director at Advantage Travel
Watchdog invites comments on Hays agency acquisitions
Phil Davies
The competition watchdog is seeking comments on Hays Travel’s acquisitions of Millington Travel and Polka Dot Travel. The Competition and Markets
Authority (CMA) said it was looking for views on the two deals, after serving an Initial Enforcement Order to Hays in December over whether they “result in a substantial lessening of competition”. The CMA has now followed up
by issuing an “invitation to comment” with a deadline of February 9. This allows interested parties
6 29 JANUARY 2026
to submit any initial views on the impact the two transactions could have on competition in the UK, according to the authority. “The CMA has not yet launched
its formal investigations into these transactions. This invitation to comment is the first part of the CMA’s information-gathering process,” a statement said. “To assist it with this assessment,
the CMA invites comments on the transactions from any interested party. Written representations about any competition issues should be provided by the deadline.” The CMA has a statutory
deadline of 40 working days to complete a Phase 1 review once it has begun. When an investigation begins “on the CMA’s initiative”, as in Hays’ case, the 40-day deadline applies only from the date the CMA considers it has “sufficient information” to begin. If it finds there is “a realistic
prospect” of a substantial lessening of competition, the CMA will launch a Phase 2 assessment unless offered “remedies” that it considers address its concerns. Hays Travel has confirmed it is
“committed to cooperating” with the CMA, but it is likely to seek some derogations, or exemptions, from
the orders to allow it to proceed with at least planning integration of the businesses if the CMA decides against proceeding to a more in-depth Phase 2 investigation. Hays announced the takeover
of Polka Dot and its 15 shops in the northwest and north Wales on October 30, and the acquisition of Millington Travel’s 14 stores in the East Midlands on November 5. This followed a series of
acquisitions in the past two years – including
Cruise.co.uk, Just Go Travel, Travel House and Miles Morgan Travel – which have taken its retail estate to about 530 branches.
travelweekly.co.uk
Turnover set to be achieved by Travel Den this month
Partnership, said revenue for the last week was up 10% year on year, with May and June taking the “biggest share of departures”. Hays Travel retail director
Jane Schumm reported continued year-on-year growth, with summer 2026 the most popular season, but also noted late bookings for imminent departures and an “emerging” summer 2027 market. Chris Richmond, Vertical Travel
Group commercial director, said the consortium had surpassed January 2025 sales through a mix of family,
touring, cruise and cultural holidays, while The Travel Village Group chief executive Phil Nuttall said cruise bookings were “outperforming” land so far in peaks. Other independent agencies were
also upbeat, with Admiral and Craig Travel director Craig Weatherill noting sales in all branches were up on “a strong year” last year, adding average spend had “gone up massively”. Travel Den director Gilli Knight
revealed the agency was on track to achieve £1 million in turnover for January, although last weekend was “the quietest” it had seen this year. Paula Gleeson, Seaside Travel head
of business and commercial, expected “a huge increase in sales” over payday weekend and for February to match last year’s “crazy” month.
PICTURE: Michael Cockerham
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 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100
