The new Co-operative Travel Group plans a “reinvention” of its high-street offering by the end of the year.
Managing director Mike Greenacre told the second annual Barclays Travel Forum there were plans in the pipeline to change the ways its shops operate on the high-street.
“There are a number of plans we are reviewing strategically at the moment that will be rolled out at the back end of the year,” he said.
He added: “My personal view is there will be some kind of renaissance of those shops left on the high-street and there will be some kind of reinvention of the offer we make to customers.”
He cited examples of maximising link ups between high-street shops and call centres and the Internet, but said customer service and investment in staff would remain paramount to the success of shops. “We have set our stall out already and our plan will be linked with the opportunity to promote one brand throughout the UK.”
Meanwhile, Greenacre said the new Co-operative Travel Group, which comes into being on July 29 following the merger of United Co-op and Travelcare, constantly reviewed its presence on the high-street. He added: “With other consolidation on the high-street there has been significant and severe cutbacks in the number of high-street agencies. It’s fair to assume that will continue because of this consolidation. We will look at it from a commercial point of view.
“Like all retail businesses, we are constantly reviewing performance and the commerciality of being on the high-street.”
In total the new group will have 430 high-street shops. Greenacre added there would be “very little” shop overlap – around 19 in the north of England.
CORRECTION: Previously we incorrectly stated the number of overlapping shops as 90. It should have read 19.