TravelManagers’ All-Time High First Quarter
PUBLISHED: E-global Travel Media; ETBNews; Travel Weekly; TravelTalk
Having set the ball rolling with strong sales in January, TravelManagers has gone on to smash it out of the park with a record-breaking first quarter for 2019: a result which Chief Operating Officer, Grant Campbell, explains as the culmination of a strong January and best-ever trading month in February followed by a record March.
“Year on year, we have experienced more than seven percent growth in our first quarter, thanks in large part to strong sales for long-haul destinations. The destination with the highest percentage growth was Asia, with an increase of more than 17 percent, which, when combined with a seven percent increase for Africa, contributed to a 70 percent increase in total adventure travel sales.”
Campbell reports that TravelManagers has also recorded double-digit growth in both Australia and New Zealand, at 11.5 percent and 11 percent respectively.
“We also achieved close to ten percent growth in one of our most high-value destinations, Europe,” he adds. “It’s very pleasing to see strong results occurring across all destinations, rather than being confined to just a few.”
Other categories to have recorded strong results in the first quarter include guided coach tours and customised holiday packages, which have increased by 27 percent and 21 percent respectively.
“These categories tend to feature more extensive, detailed itineraries: it’s a great indication that our personal travel managers (PTMs) are continuing to focus on designing holiday experiences that are individually tailored to their clients’ needs.”
Sports-related travel has also increased significantly year-on-year, and although it represents a relatively small percentage of TravelManagers’ total sales volume, Campbell describes this achievement as a hallmark of the company’s overall philosophy.
“We have a network of PTMs who among them represent a vast range of interests when it comes to travel, and every area of the company is designed to foster that entrepreneurial spirit so that they can grow their businesses by pursuing those interests.”
When asked to predict what lies ahead for the remainder of 2019, Campbell points to the previous year’s results.
“Every year since TravelManagers began, we have achieved a new record for first quarter sales, which has always served as a strong foundation for the year ahead. Whilst we can expect this year to present its share of challenges along the way, we’re off to a great start and have every reason to expect great things from 2019.”
