| Journal: TWUK | Section: |
| Title: | Issue Date: 07/08/00 |
| Author: | Page Number: 16 |
| Copyright: Other |
people profile
people profile
profileJob title: director of sales.
Path to career: graduate trainee, Mercedes Benz, 1984. Supervisor, Manpower, 1985-1986. Expedition leader, Guerba Expeditions, 1987, operations manager, 1989 and general manager, 1991. Left in 1993 to study for MBA. Became Bridge Travel brand manager forDisneyland Paris product in 1995 before being promoted to director of sales last year.
industry talk
n What was your first job in travel and how much did you get paid?
A trainee expedition leader working in Africa for the princely sum of £35 a week.
n What has been your biggest challenge in the travel industry?
On joining Bridge Travel, having to rapidly learn how to produce a brochure, with pricing being a particular nightmare.
n Who has been the biggest influence on your career and why?
Martin Crabb, the managing director of my previous company, Guerba Expeditions, for providing me with some great opportunities and challenges.
n What’s the best job you’ve had, apart from your current one?
Running expeditions and safaris in Africa, which involved being paid to take great groups of clients to fabulous areas most people never have the opportunity to visit.
n Which company, apart from your own, do you most admire and why?
Virgin, for it’s ability through brand and image, to appeal to such a wide range of people across so many very different market sectors.
n If you weren’t in travel, what would you be doing?
Working for a relief agency or charity dealing with developing countries.
n What single thing have you achieved at work which has given you the most satisfaction?
Expanding the Disneyland Paris product at Bridge considerably beyond what many thought was possible.
n What advice would you give to someone starting out in the travel industry?
Be prepared to embrace change.
n Do you have a Web site and if so how many bookings do you receive on it?
Yes, www.bridgetravel.co.uk Although it receives a fair number of hits, the bookings we make on it are negligible.
n Make one prediction about travel in the 21st century:
Bridge Travel will be harnessing technology to provide virtual holidays. We will, of course, expect payments to be real rather than virtual.
personal talk
n What is your star sign?
Aries.
n Which living person do you most respect and why?
Sir John Harvey Jones, he has achieved a lot of business success through being prepared to implement change and recognising and utilising the value of people. He’s refreshingly down to earth as well.
n What is your greatest extravagance?
My kit car, a Caterham 7, which I built with one of my brothers. Totally impractical and wickedly fast.
n If you could be anyone for the day who would you be and why?
A pilot with the Red Arrows. I’ve always wanted to learn how to fly and this would be the ultimate experience.
n Who, apart from your partner, would be your ideal holiday companion and where would you go?
Michael Palin as someone who enjoys travel just for the sheer adventure of it and has a fine eye for the amusing. We would go anywhere in South America.
n What type of holiday would you avoid at all costs?
A fortnight sitting on a beach.
n What is your favourite TV programme/film/book?
My favourite TV programme is Have I Got News For You, the film is Notting Hill and the book is What Am I Doing Here, by Bruce Chatwin.
n What would you have put on your gravestone?
Tried everything (except bungee jumping).