Saga Travel has announced it will merge its Cruise and Holidays regional sales teams.
The move is designed to allow the teams to increase their coverage and simplify their approach with a view to helping agents better understand Saga products for over 50s travellers.
In addition to this, a new role of senior regional sales manager has been created to oversee the amalgamated team, with recruitment underway immediately.
From last month, Robin Shaw took over as chief executive of Saga’s Holidays division as well as its Cruise division, of which he was already chief executive, as chief executive of Saga Travel.
In a recent interview with Travel Weekly, Shaw said the trade was a “huge” growth area and “a channel we can’t afford not to be in”.
Iain Powell, head of trade sales a Saga, said “The changes announced today are recognition of the importance of our trade partners to our future success. We have ambitious growth plans through the trade and I am confident we are now set up to deliver again these targets.”
“We know that the large proportion of our customer demographic wants to book through a travel agent. They want peace of mind, everything to be included and a hassle free holiday experience. I am confident that Saga’s offering fits perfectly with this and with the advantage of being able to book through a local travel agent will make it an incredibly compelling holiday option.”
More: Over-50s specialist Saga names new chairman