After a day where delegates were free to explore the Universal theme parks in Orlando, the formal sessions for the Global Travel Group conference kicked off on November 27 with a Q&A with Andy Stark, CEO of the Global Travel Group.
In a wide-ranging conversation, Mr Stark discussed the challenges faced by British travel agents and industry trends. Legislative and regulatory changes, including the payment services directive, GDPR legislation and package travel directive, have all affected how travel agents do their jobs, according to Mr Stark but there are still opportunities to be exploited.
The payment services directive cut off a revenue stream for travel agents, with the banning of charging for credit card transactions. While it is important for agents to make customers aware of other ways to pay for holidays, Mr Stark said that credit cards are still popular for travel purchases and Global has had "in-depth dialogue with banks and merchant services" to minimise the impact on travel agents and find new ways to make money.
"We know it's a cost to your business and it's a cost you have to get from somewhere else," he told delegates.
GDPR legislation compliance, however, was viewed by Mr Stark as an opportunity.
"We understand the importance of holding people's data," Mr Stark said, adding that when agents contact their customers about how their data will be protected under GDPR legislation it is an opportunity to engage with customers, reignite the relationship and use the data constructively.
Mr Stark was more critical of the package travel directive, describing it as "mysterious legislation" which "became law with six weeks' notice". He said it was "tricky" because Global had to quickly interpret the legislation and cascade the information across the membership. The responsibilities of travel agents have increased as a result of the directive, Mr Stark said, but he added that agents have the backing of Global, and a disciplined approach with ATOL protection and bonding, as well as keeping agents informed means there have not yet been any issues with Global's members.
The Q&A then turned to trends in the travel industry, with Mr Stark citing a "switch from the Western Mediterranean to the Eastern Mediterranean", particularly the Greek islands and Turkey, and an increase in bookings to central Europe, particularly Croatia. Away from Europe, Mr Stark said the US remains "a key destination despite a drift in the pound" as well as "encouraging sales in the Caribbean" and "a little bit of North Africa".
To keep ahead of trends, Mr Stark urged agents to watch where carriers move their aircraft, see what new destinations are opened up by airlines and "if you see a lot of adverts for a destination, that indicates there is demand out there."
Leveraging new technology was another trend Mr Stark mentioned as being important for Global's agents with the successful roll-out of iBOS, a new operating system which replaces technology that was 25 years old.
With Global's sales stats, Mr Stark was optimistic, reporting "close to a 20% increase year on year" with a 25% increase in cruise bookings. Another opportunity for agents cited by Mr Stark was to consider moving to high street premises when bigger travel companies move out, particularly if you have "a clever council" which encourages small-to-medium-sized enterprises from moving in. He said many Global agents are "bucking the trend" by moving into high street shops or opening more than one high street shop.
Mr Stark was also optimistic about the future of travel agents, telling delegates that customers still want expert advice from experienced people when booking holidays. He said that at this stage, Brexit was "clearly not affecting business" and praised the "resilience" of agents with Global seeing "growth in all angles".
