A match made in Devon
They say there’s nothing new under the sun, and I’m inclined to agree.
Many moons ago when I worked in an agency in Essex, I was at the point of launching a holiday club for single people which I’d called Pick and Mix.
Having realised that all agents get requests from single travellers who do not wish to pay exorbitant supplements, I started to ask whether such clients would be willing to share with like-minded travellers in the same situation. The response was overwhelming and I set things in motion.
The idea was that all agents involved in the club would ‘match up’ clients and split the commissions on any holidays they booked. Simple! But unfortunately, before the scheme could get off the ground, the company was sold to a multiple and the idea was squashed.
It is therefore refreshing to see that Diane Denney, based in North Devon, has updated the concept to suit the 21st century with her new online venture, Someone2travelwith.com.
Launched last week, the service operates much like an online dating agency; clients type in their requirements and preferences in as much or as little detail as they choose, stipulating such things as age, gender, smoker/non-smoker, cultural interests, religion and hobbies. As far as I know, you could probably demand a GSOH too.
The service is free to travel agents and clients only pay when they have been successfully matched. For a fee of £30, they can expect up to 10 matches.
I’m sure Diane will find a large market for this idea and I wish her every success. Following the online dating model, I expect it’s also only a matter of time before her Internet clients start speaking in their own codes: WLTM will become WLTT (would like to travel), a GTI will be a globe-trotting individual, while a LIFE would be a lover of Indonesia and the Far East. There, I’ve started you off, now make up your own.
No silver lining
Although I’ve been doing this job for a lifetime, I still get a buzz when I find the right holiday for my clients. I’d liken it to the sort of rush some people get when they jump off bridges attached to rubber bands, but much cheaper.
I was especially pleased then, when I persuaded an elderly couple to realise their dream of a trip to Canada.
The pair had never travelled long haul and were inexperienced abroad generally. I sensed they needed a bit of hand-holding and sought out companies that offered the sort of door-to-door reassurance they needed, with a pick-up from home and that sort of thing.
Booking them on a Titan tour, we beamed at each other, all pleased and excited that a gentle adventure was in the offing, with the wife wearing the biggest smile of all.
However, the excitement was short-lived. The elderly lady reappeared in the office alone three weeks later to announce she and her husband would have to cancel the holiday.
Given they weren’t due to depart for nine months, I was surprised at the woman’s adamant tone, her certainty that nothing could change between now and then and the urgency with which she intended to put paid to the trip.
“What has happened to change your mind?” I asked. The woman explained that since the booking had been made, her husband had worried about spending “all that money” and had fallen into a depression.
“After all, there’s so many other things that need money spending on them,” she told me. “There’s the guttering and the septic tank to be renewed…”
I must admit I felt somewhat guilty, as if I’d hoodwinked them into booking, but I knew they’d been glowing with excitement at the prospect when they had left me. I tried to explain there were months to go and they could pay off the costs in installments, but she was firm.
“No, love, we just can’t have the worry of it.”
The holiday was cancelled and Helen Tate of Titan agency sales rang to add she knows I am a good Titan salesperson, but there was no need for me to drive clients to depression just to secure a sale. I quipped that the clients drive me to drink, so where’s the difference?
Helen was on her way back to Exeter where her 18-month-old son, Fletcher, was awaiting her return. What a busy lady she is. Some agents may remember Helen from her days at Travel 2 in Manchester, but she has drifted a long way south since then and now juggles a busy schedule working for Titan with being a mum. Fortunately, with help from husband Nick, she manages to be pretty super on all fronts.
A shot to the system
Finally, a word of warning from Tanya Lewis, key accounts supervisor for Virgin Holidays: ‘Beware Ivan the Terrible’.
“Are you really a spy who has to speak in a cryptic code?” I asked when she uttered those words to me. But no, she is no spy and nor is she referring to some dreadful contestant from the Russian version of the ‘X Factor’. She’s referring to that particularly strong brand of vodka that separates the men from the boys.
Apparently Tanya and her boss Kieran found themselves propping up a bar mixing the aforementioned demon spirit with a little cranberry juice at a recent travel function.
Tanya says she doesn’t remember much as the drink had a special alcoholic amnesiac effect, but when she and Kieran turned to face the bar they discovered it had closed without them noticing and everyone had gone home.
That’s what happens when you consume a drink, the sole purpose of which is to help you to forget.
