Report by Steve Jones and Jeremy Skidmore
FIRST Choice will continue buying niche operators rather
than become embroiled in a scrap with competitors in the traditional mass
markets, chief executive Peter Long said.
Speaking during an interview with Travel Weekly
editor Jeremy Skidmore at the ABTA convention in Kos, Long said he wants to
build a different business model to other pan-European players.
“The mass market in the UK with First Choice and Unijet is
our core business but we have built a series of niche operators around that,”
he said. “We don’t want to be a generalist and have a punch-up with Preussag or
Airtours in every market.”
He said there are a number of opportunities in Europe for
further expansion.
Long said it was unlikely that First Choice would
collaborate with other UK operators over the joint buying of beds in a bid to
compete with Preussag but revealed talks were taking place over the joint
purchasing of fuel.