IN THE SPOTLIGHT: AGENT COUPLES IN THE LOCKDOWN
Paul and Stacey Knapper
Three couples in the travel industry talk about how they are coping with their new way of life after nearly six weeks of working from home. Juliet Dennis reports
PAUL AND STACEY KNAPPER Paul, owner, Spires Travel; Stacey, branch manager, Carrick Travel
Paul and Stacey Knapper live in a two-bedroom house in Malvern and are both travel agents – for different businesses. When the government’s lockdown was imposed, they had to think about
how to arrange their new work lives as separate agencies in the same house. Paul, owner of Spires Travel in Worcester, works in the dining room, while Stacey, branch manager of Carrick Travel’s Pershore branch in Worcestershire, is in the kitchen after they sourced a desk from Paul’s parents. Paul says: “I was provisionally set up to work from home but I’d never done so full-time. I’m used to working in the shop and talking to customers and staff. Working from home is completely different – you have to be regimented.” For Stacey, who is handling all calls to her branch after the rest of her team was furloughed, the switch was harder. She says: “I’ve never worked from home before. When I first set my computer up, I sat there for 10 minutes and thought ‘how do I do this?’ Normally I’d drive for 40 minutes to get to work. The first couple of days I felt I had to be at my desk all the time.” It took a few days before Stacey began to take breaks. “I log on and listen to all the voice messages and start replying to emails but I also find time to hang out the washing,” she says. The pair now meet in the kitchen or garden for coffee breaks and lunch, and go for a walk each evening. Paul says: “We try to sit at our desks at 9am and work until 5pm. We are strict about it and are both busy. We try to have lunch together every day in the garden, as we have a lovely view of the Malvern hills, and we have a 10-minute tea break in the morning most days. “If we need advice – if we have dealt with the same operators, for example – we will have a chat, but we try not to do that in our breaks. The idea of the breaks is to get away from work. It’s nice to have someone to talk to and not live and breathe work; the garden is a godsend.” Paul adds: “There are pluses to working from home: no commute, getting
up later, and having lunch in the garden. I’m coping. But if you gave me a choice to go back to work, I’d definitely go back to the shop. I like speaking to my staff and customers.” Stacey agrees: “We’ve created a nice balance and this has encouraged us to do a bit more exercise. It’s got easier working from home but I definitely miss not having people around and I’ll be glad to get back to work.”
14 30 APRIL 2020
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
