NEWS FEATURE
Life on the edge
Selling travel
from some of the
UK’s most farfl
ung regions can
throw up its own
set of challenges,
as Edward
Robertson reports
14 | Travel Weekly | July 3 2009
Whether you are dependent
on your local airport for
business or selling holidays
to a beach resort, agents
around the country face
diff erent challenges according
to their locations.
This is no more obvious than
when you look at the most easterly,
westerly, northerly and
southerly (central) agencies in
the UK, and see how they run
their businesses.
While these agencies stand
out because of their diff erences,
there are certain themes
that bind them together, and
none more so than the ongoing
recession they are all fi ghting.
Can-Am Travel owner Alan
Hubbard believes speedy
replies to enquiries stops
customers shopping around,
while Regent Holidays manager
Russell Macgregor believes
agents must focus on price.
St Ives Travel Agency owner
Steve Murphy said focusing
customers’ minds on the need
to get away was important,
while John Leask partner Peter
Leask said: “Agents need to
give a good service and hope
customers come back when
the market picks up.”
“The best thing is
the quality of life;
you’re not stuck
in a traffi c jam for
an hour trying to
get home”
MOST WESTERLY
STEVE MURPHY,
OWNER, ST IVES
TRAVEL AGENCY,
ST IVES, CORNWALL
For many of us, working as a
travel agent in one of the UK’s
most picturesque seaside
towns may seem like the
perfect job.
St Ives Travel Agency is
based on the north Cornish
coast with a view over
Porthminster beach, which
becomes packed with tourists
in the summer.
While the view may off er
a certain amount of inspiration
to agency owner Steve
Murphy and his two members
of staff , it can also prove to be
equally galling.
“While it is a fantastic view,
the biggest problem is being
stuck indoors from 9am to
5.30pm while everyone else is
on the beach,” he said.
However, he added that
living and working in a small,
relaxed town has its benefi ts.
“The best thing is the quality
of life; you’re not stuck in a
traffi c jam for an hour trying to
get home,” he said.
St Ives Travel Agency owner Steve
Murphy said the biggest problem
was being stuck indoors when
everyone else is on the beach
Murphy started working in
the agency a year after it was
set up in 1972, before buying
the business in 1996.
While the bulk of his market
is the older generation, he
admitted to serving a steady
stream of younger clients who
still consult their local agent
when looking for surf and
adventure overseas.
“We fi nd the younger
people always give us a call;
whether or not we convert
their enquiries is something
else,” Murphy said.
“St Ives is a reasonably small
community, their parents have
probably dealt with us over
the years, so they will always
give us a shot no matter what
itinerary they’re planning.
“We also act as a point of
contact for when things go
wrong. Recently we had a
young lad bodyboarding in
Bali who was badly wiped out
when someone fell on him,”
Murphy added.
“On his journey home, he
could carry most of his stuff ,
but he couldn’t carry his
board. We phoned the consolidator
and arranged some
help for him,” he said.
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www.travelweekly.co.uk
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