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There never seems to be a good time in Interim Management to go on holiday. I’ve heard from a number of interims this year ‘……I’ve had to cancel due to work commitments before, if I cancel this one my wife / husband / significant other will leave / kill me’. As an interim provider you’re always thinking, if I book this particular week will the big change programme I’ve been tracking since last year kick off while I’m baking in the sun, lathered in factor 50 looking for a deckchair without a towel while the kids nag for an ice cream.
The ‘Great British Summer Holiday’ has changed dramatically in recent years and the demise of several tour operators in recent months is testament to this. In the last couple of months we’ve seen Goldtrail, Sun4U, Kiss all collapse leaving many stranded abroad and bearing the cost of getting home. Why would you bother? Well it seems this year that many aren’t and are choosing to stay in the UK to go to one of our own seaside resorts or as I’ve seen more commonly this year go on a family camping holiday. There are more people I know who have families, relatives or friends with holiday homes in Europe so getting abroad via a budget airline and quick transfer at the other end is hassle free and cheaper.
With more people becoming internet savvy and the rise and rise of sites such as Expedia, Last Minute and Trip Advisor planning and booking a holiday and almost knowing what to expect before you get there is more bad news for the operators. Among my friends and peers, it’s almost become an integral part of the holiday experience; sitting down with your family and laptop to choose a destination, find a hotel, read the reviews and book cheap flights. Is this why we hear of all the ‘last minute deals’ with only 2 weeks of the summer holidays remaining?
While writing this blog I’ve notice a news article on the Wall Street Journal with the headline ‘More UK Tour Operators to Face Insolvency’. Large companies like TUI Travel and Thomas Cook will survive the downturn but smaller, lower-budget operators working on tight margins are under huge pressure. So what is your opinion on package holiday operators and their future? Is the demise reversible with people opting to book their own via budget airlines and discount websites or choosing to holiday in the UK? Holidays are close to all of our hearts so I would like to hear some interesting comments and debate on this subject.
Jonathan Flynn is Head of Retail at Interim Partners.
August 19th, 2010 at 9:28 am
Now that my children have fled the nest I have two types of holiday. The 1 week (“OMG, I’m shattered”) recovery one that calls for a good hotel, excellent service, sun, sea etc. Typically I travel with small businesses that have achieved dominance of the area that I choose to visit. I’d bet that they are relatively high margin operators. Then there is the sadly less frequent experiential one: longer and involving exploring. Again, probably high margin. I see good prospects for both of these. Where the future looks bleak is for those holidays operators who fail to differentiate their product whilst also requiring their customers to submit themselves to the misery of airports, cramped aircraft, poor service and unimaginative food. For those with children who have not yet tried it, I thoroughly recommend a mobile home in France with Key Camp, Eurosites or whoever they are at the moment. Travel is independent, the young find new best mates immediately and one’s budget can be whatever one wants. Best of all, there is so much opporunity for exercise that one can eat and drink all that one wants and still return lighter!
August 20th, 2010 at 7:33 am
How so true? I had planned a two week break at Easter after working flat out for 9 months away from home. However the down-turn in the market meant that when I was offered something starting “now” I almost cancelled both weeks. However chat with the client showed that I could take one week - Isle of man and soooo nice. The family then went off to Butlins in Skegness at a Spring Harvest. Turns out that I managed to spend two days/one night with them too. The client has now extended my 3 month stay into 9 months. Summer holiday non-starter, but actually not really work, but daugther looking at Uni’s ready for next year. and so proud of her x4 A grades at AS and wanting to get into Cambridge!The uni towns were interesting places to visit too.
August 20th, 2010 at 12:10 pm
I’m being selfish and am off to ride a motorcycle through Monument Valley at the end of October - my thing to do this year before I die.
My wife is off to Vietnam (can’t face it post ‘Platoon’)
It has been a very bad couple of years, although I am now coaching a bit, and doing some consultancy to keep me ticking over - the advantage being you can take time off without any real damage.
If you do take a break in the middle of a contract the real cost borders on the ‘horrific’. I made the mistake in the past of working out what 12 days to Machu Pichu had really cost us - (don’t do it).
It does seem to be picking up a bit, although the effects of Government cuts have, I suspect, yet to bite.
Mike
August 20th, 2010 at 1:06 pm
I learnt a while ago that your family grows up far too quick. For most of my life I was career obsessed and worked hard to be a senior manager for a multinational in my 20’s. I spent a lot of time on the road, and nearly killed myself every time we had a tender, a delivery deadline or a restructuring to manage. And while the times were interesting and a great learning experiences, I never saw my wife and kids, and was too exhausted to enjoy them as I recuperated each weekend. Then it happened, a firm I went to made cuts on a first one in and last one out basis. It was the push I needed to go independent.
And once I did, I learnt through good planning I could be a great professional and a great family man. Although the pipeline is a lot thinner these days, I have had the pleasure of taking every school holiday period off, except in Summer where I have enjoyed part time working and 3 weeks off. I have been able to be there making memories with my family, and also I have been able to focus refreshed responding to the needs of my clients. It is why I went freelance.
AS for tour companies, I have always hated them, prefering to travel on my own plans (unless a cruise or Disney attractions), so it makes little difference to me.
I used to think Spain would be hell, of sex, sand and sangria types, and visions of 1960’s and 70’s high rise hotels. Thankfully with Easyjet, Ryanair and the like, you can have an economical and fantastic vacation either renting privately like we did at Easter (a wonderful cottage overlooking Loch Ness with a fireplace and grand piano), or with a Vacation Club like Marriott - where we stayed at Disneyland Paris and Marbella this year.
But yes, I have had to postpone my planned trips to the East coast of the US and Japan that we had planned for 2010 and 2011 in favour of using Tesco points and driving to France and keeping European. Interesting times.
August 20th, 2010 at 9:35 pm
Two points ;
On interim it all about expectation management ;
1. build your holiday expectations into your dayly rate so your holiday is covered
2. Make sure the organisation you are working with know you are scheuduling x number of days per year
On Package Holiday Operators and survival
1. It comes down to the offer, quality and service you provide relative to your price and your cost base that differentiates you from the competition. If you offer is differentiated, motivating, credible and leverageable then you’ll be ok… if not then ‘hasta la vista, baby’. All to oftern I see tour operators offering the same approach, same offers and competing on price… on this basis if that is there startegy then they deserve to go to the wall.
August 22nd, 2010 at 9:34 am
For all of us who have experienced the reality of “low cost” travel opportunities you’r going to relate to this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAg0lUYHHFc
August 23rd, 2010 at 8:22 am
Traditional package holidays have been declining in numbers for more than 15 years replaced by dynamic packaging where you buy your flight and hotel from separate companies, although often through the same website/travel agent. These dynamic packages are attractive to the mass market because they are cheaper - the provider does not carry the additional legal obligations and costs associated with a traditional package. Kiss and Goldtrail were effectively budget airlines targeting the bottom ends of their respective markets – any accommodation they also sold was largely incidental. The warning this sends out is for those consumers chasing the cheapest deals rather than most of our peers. If your supplier is trying to operate on rock bottom margins they will have little to cushion them from surprises (in this case an ash cloud) and there is therefore a risk in booking with them.
Ironically in the short term the latest failures may reverse the trend away from the traditional package as mass market consumers may be prepared to pay extra for the additional security they provide. However the experience over the last several years is that consumers have very short memories and by the time they get round to selecting next years holiday most will again select based primarily on price. For the mass market consumer UK holidays still aren’t a realistic alternative as, unless you are camping, the fortnight in Benidorm is still cheaper and the weather is likely to be better.
As for the rest of this summer there are probably more failures to come (the annual failure season normally starts in September) but any casualties are likely to be much smaller players than Kiss and Goldtrail – the bigger guys all appear sound financially at present.
August 25th, 2010 at 3:01 pm
It is a dilema at the end of an assignment also - whether to have a deserved rest or be around for the next opportunity! Easy to end up working all hours and then the possibility of no one to go on holiday with!
Getting your finances sorted out and making sure you have money for the rainy days (not just the holiday ones)while on an assignment will make the decision process of whether or not to go on holiday a little easier as Scot highlighted earlier.
Kelvin