AIRTOURS Holidays has criticised the industry for
neglecting its most loyal customers as it launches a bid to reverse the
traditional booking pattern.
The operator, which carries 2.3 million passengers
each summer, has adopted a no-frills model to reward early bookers.
It aims to halve the one million distressed holidays
in the lates market and shift 10% of its business across into pre-May early
bookings.
MyTravel UK and Ireland chief executive Duncan Wilson
said operators, including Airtours Holidays, had failed to look after their
most valued customers because the best holiday deals remained in the lates
market.
He said: “These are the people we should be looking
after best but as an industry and as a business in the last few years, it’s
been the reverse of that. We had been coming out with the highest prices early
and reducing them as we went through the booking cycle.”
But TUI UK – traditionally better at attracting early
bookings – maintained the industry had existed on the traditional model for 35
years.
Managing director Chris Mottershead said: “Airtours
will not change the model overnight by giving away free holidays. They might
want to become like a low-cost airline but we want to stay a package holiday
company.”
Airtours’ attempt to turn the industry’s traditional
sales tactics on its head began by offering Every Day Low Pricing in 2003
brochures. The long-term strategy has been beefed up to offer a raft of deals,
including no flight supplements, nil deposits, and £99 holidays with 2003
bookings for those who book early.
Airtours claims it is already more than half-way to
achieving its target of 200,000-250,000 extra early bookings by Christmas.
Wilson added: “It’s all about generating incremental
sales in the early market, so the proportion left in the lates market is
reduced.”
He said it would now be easier to assess the
best-selling products and where to add capacity early on, drop poorer-selling
products and ensure only higher priced stock was left to sell in the lates
period.
But he admitted recent advertising had caused problems
with rivals, who have criticised the new strategy. “Some competitors have taken
exception to us adopting this strategy and marketing it,” said Wilson. “That
will run its course and we will resolve our differences. It’s not taxing our
minds too much.”
Rivals criticised the move as
a way of driving up volumes to impress the City and were sceptical Airtours was
managing to make margins on 2003 holiday sales.