FLIGHT Centre’s new Cruise Boutique offering (CW 12 Aug) was formally launched last night in Sydney, at a glittering gathering which hosted the Australasian leaders of the global cruise sector. A specialised division of Flight Centre Travel Group’s (FCTG) Travel Associates brand, the Cruise Boutique is initially launching with 14...
FLIGHT Centre’s new Cruise Boutique offering (CW 12 Aug) was formally launched last night in Sydney, at a glittering gathering which hosted the Australasian leaders of the global cruise sector.
A specialised division of Flight Centre Travel Group’s (FCTG) Travel Associates brand, the Cruise Boutique is initially launching with 14 branches nationally, but FCTG Group GM of Premium Leisure Brands, Danielle Galloway, told Cruise Weekly that was just the start, with the company targeting expansion to 20 stores by the end of 2019.
Each of the Travel Associates Cruise Boutiques will undergo an external redesign, with Galloway saying the new specialisation will “cater for a very specific customer requirement”.
Each Cruise Boutique will focus strongly on the experience of its advisors, who have an average of 10 years in travel.
“Many of the advisors are past and present CLIA masters or ambassadors,” she said, with hundreds of nights at sea.
“These experts live cruise,” she enthused.
Galloway said she hoped in 12 months to announce “real growth” in cruise bookings for the Travel Associates brand, along with “higher repeat customer business than ever before.
“Success to us will be represented by positive growth in cruise numbers, increased client loyalty, strong margins, exciting attachments for clients, and of course TTV,” she said.
Galloway is pictured centre with the leaders of some of the initial 14 Cruise Boutiques, from left: Debbi Clarke (Erina, NSW); Janette Wall (Balgowlah, NSW); Kathy Pavlidis (Kew, Vic); and Alison Lord (Turramurra, NSW).
More pics from last night at facebook.com/cruiseweekly.
