Gloucestershire-based Forest Travel is warning that it may leave the Advantage franchise, claiming its seven shops are being starved of Airtours’ brochures.
Managing director Colin Knight said sales of Airtours have dropped by 20% and he was thinking about leaving the franchise. He added he wanted to remain part of the SWIFTA consortium, whose members have already left Advantage to join ARTAC Worldchoice.
If Knight does leave, the franchise will lose four-branch Forest Travel along with two-branch Starline Travel and single agency Swift Travel.
“The brochure supply from Airtours is awful. How can I sell the product when it’s not on the shelves?” he said. “Staying in the franchise means leaving SWIFTA, which I don’t really want to do, as it is now aligned with Worldchoice. To stay in SWIFTA, I will probably have to move to Worldchoice.”
Airtours sales, marketing and development director Ed Sims said he would investigate the lack of brochures. But he added: “As part of the franchise deal, we supply Advantage with a number of brochures which is disproportionate to their level of business.”